YouSaid · the spoken record

Fedotov

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385

first

1994-10-21

most recent

2019-09-10

sittings or episodes

58

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un-security-council

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1. “The Triangular Initiative, in particular, has already produced concrete results in terms of several tons of drugs seized; even more importantly, it has made it possible for those three countries to engage in constructive cooperation at the operational level. UNODC is continuing to support law enforcement operations in the region through new initiatives, such as the Criminal Assets Southern Hub, the Southern Trafficking Operational Plan and the Maritime Regional Security Initiative. Furthermore, UNODC is promoting drug control cooperation at the interregional level to assist countries in countering transnational organized crime and drug trafficking rings involved in the Afghan opiates trade.”

   2014-06-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7208 (2014) · source

2. “We are also building effective international cooperation and partnerships through such networks as the Regional Programme for Afghanistan and Neighbouring Countries; the Triangular Initiative, which brings together Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan; and the Afghanistan-Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan (AKT) Initiative, while working closely with many regional organizations. Ministerial review meetings have been held recently between the members of the AKT group and the Triangular Initiative, as well as the Steering Committee of the Regional Programme, to further strengthen cooperation in countering illicit drugs and in border management among countries of West and Central Asia.”

   2014-06-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7208 (2014) · source

3. “However, it would be unfair to say that nothing has been done to confront this challenge. Here are just a few facts and figures on the most recent developments. Notwithstanding the election period and security concerns, the Counter-Narcotics Police of Afghanistan have continued with the eradication of opium crop in 12 provinces although the figure of 1,600 hectares eradicated from the beginning of the season to 2 June is down form previous years. In the period from January to December 2013, the Afghan Counter-Narcotics Police undertook 440 operations resulting in 383 arrests, dismantled two heroin laboratories, and seized 2.8 tons of opiates and 13.8 tons ofprecursor chemicals. UNODC's role is to provide support and assistance to the relevant Afghan counter-narcotic authorities and to help them to do more.”

   2014-06-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7208 (2014) · source

4. “The link between the lack of security and opium cultivation is also evident. 90 per cent of total opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan takes place in the southern and western provinces - the most insecure areas, where anti-Government elements and drug traders are extremely active. Money-laundering is hindering proper tax collection and creating an underresourced Government bereft of the financial means to confront illicit drugs. This is true on both the supply side and the demand side; the country has the highest rate of opium addiction in the world. Unfortunately, these problems have not been concretely reflected in the Kabul and Tokyo processes. As a result, counter-narcotics efforts have not been given a high priority by national and international stakeholders.”

   2014-06-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7208 (2014) · source

5. “Over the past decade, drug cultivation and production have been the most profitable illicit and criminal business activities in Afghanistan. At UNODC, we estimate that the global opium market is worth some $68 billion, and 80 per cent of the world's opium and heroin is produced in Afghanistan. The narcotics trade may be worth between 10 to 15 per cent of the country's gross domestic product. In 2013, the area under poppy cultivation reached an historical high of 209,000 hectares. Opium production increased by 50 per cent, compared to 2012, rising to 5,500 tons. Afghanistan remains at the centre ofa multi-billion dollar illicit business that impacts on security, the rule of law, health and sustainable development. This is being driven not only by global consumption, but also by domestic speculation and corruption.”

   2014-06-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7208 (2014) · source

6. “Mr. Fedotov: I welcome today's initiative of the Security Council to discuss Afghanistan, and I am pleased to be here to provide a briefing together with my dear colleague Jan Kubis to the assessment of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) of the current situation. Special Representative of the Secretary-General Kubis was very clear about the risks and challenges facing the current election process in Afghanistan. The 2014 political and military transition is likely to create considerable political and security uncertainty, which must be addressed. At this crucial moment, Afghanistan needs continued international support. If its economic development declines and international aid is reduced, along with business confidence, the reliance on the illicit economy will further increase.”

   2014-06-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7208 (2014) · source

7. “Even considering the budgetary discipline prevailing in the majority of countries around the world, I would like to urge everyone here to reflect on our common and shared responsibility to tackle the challenges posed by drug trafficking, transnational organized crime, corruption, money-laundering and terrorism in the region. For its part, UNODC is ready to give its continued support to the States of West Africa and the Sahel.”

   2013-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7090 (2013) · source

8. “I would like to thank our partners and donors for their support for UNODC activities, including our Regional Programme for West Africa and the West Africa Coast Initiative. Nonetheless, it is clear that additional funding is needed to address those pressing threats. As the Secretary-General's report emphasizes, the fight against drug trafficking and crime in West Africa and the Sahel should be integrated with larger-scale efforts to address challenges such as governance and the rule of law, poverty and youth unemployment. Today's meeting is an excellent opportunity to assess priorities and challenges, enhance synergies and decide on the best strategies for responding to the situation.”

   2013-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7090 (2013) · source

9. “Together with ECOWAS and the United Nations Office for West Africa, UNODC organized a regional donors conference, held in Abidjan in October. The conference made an urgent appeal for strengthening regional cooperation and national capacities for controlling land, sea and air borders, and for strengthening criminal justice systems and promoting judicial cooperation. Those who fund and commit acts related to drug trafficking and other serious crimes must be brought to justice in accordance with international rules and standards. First and foremost, that requires greater commitment and more resources, given the size of the challenges facing the region and the difficulty of intervening in unstable and post-conflict environments.”

   2013-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7090 (2013) · source

10. “UNODC provides this support through a wide range of regional, subregional and national projects, including the West Africa Coast Initiative, the Airport Communication Project, the Global Container Control Programme, the Judicial Regional Platform of the Sahel, the network of central authorities and prosecutors in West Africa, and the initiative to strengthen criminal justice systems in the Sahel. All our initiatives are implemented in close consultation with the Governments of the region and in cooperation with our regional and international partners, including the United Nations Office for West Africa, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, the Department of Political Affairs, the World Customs Organization and INTERPOL.”

    2013-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7090 (2013) · source

11. “As noted in the report, a number of initiative to fight drug trafficking, organized crime and drug abuse in West Africa - such as the African Union Plan of Action on Drug Control and Crime Prevention 2007-2012, the ECOWAS Political Declaration and the ECOWAS Regional Action Plan to Address the Growing Problem of Illicit Drug Trafficking and Organized Crime in West Africa - have been launched in recent years to address these threats in all their forms. It is on that basis that ONUDC developed its Regional Programme Regional Programme for West Africa 2012-2014, which constitutes the main part of our technical assistance to the countries of the region.”

    2013-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7090 (2013) · source

12. “The international community has acknowledged the urgency of the situation, particularly because of the proliferation of arms in the Sahel and the ever-more evident links between criminal organizations and extremist and terrorist groups in the region. The Secretary-General has called on several occasions for greater support to West Africa so as to meet the threats to its security. The Security Council has also expressed its concern at the growing impact of drug trafficking and organized crime on humanitarian aid and peacebuilding efforts in the region, and has repeatedly recalled the need for greater international cooperation. These concerns are presented in the report of the Secretary-General to the Security Council on transnational organized crime and illicit drug trafficking in West Africa and the Sahel region (S/2013/359).”

    2013-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7090 (2013) · source

13. “Other scourges involved include the smuggling of migrants, trafficking in persons, the smuggling of firearms, cigarettes and gasoline, and piracy in the Gulf of Guinea. These threats and the enormous profits generated have a detrimental impact on efforts to achieve security and development in the region. They compromise good governance, undermine legitimate economies and fuel corruption. The funds generated allow criminal organizations to support their operations and to support terrorist activities in the region. Local drug use and the resulting health problems are intensified, as evidenced by the growing number of HIV infections attributable to injecting drug use. The countries of the region are fully aware of the threats posed by these scourges, especially to national security and stability and the credibility of institutions.”

    2013-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7090 (2013) · source

14. “This profit has provided criminals with revenue far exceeding the national security budgets of many countries of the region. Traffickers have been able to defeat law enforcement detection and suppression measures by adapting their operational procedures, including by using including shipping and containers, as well as commercial flights and private aircraft. The UNODC World Drug Report 2013 confirms that the global phenomenon of drugs is a source of concern in West Africa. Heroin also passes through the area en route to lucrative markets. It has also been found that some of the methamphetamine seized in East Asia comes from West Africa. It is further noted that the prevalence in the region of fraudulent medicine, which poses a serious threat to public health and safety, remains a concern.”

    2013-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7090 (2013) · source

15. “West Africa and the Sahel are particularly vulnerable because of complex and interrelated problems relating in particular to political instability, porous borders and the vastness of the region. An assessment of threats posed by transnational organized crime in West Africa was presented by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) at the forty-second ordinary session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) early this year. The assessment confirmed the ongoing threat posed by cocaine trafficking from Latin America to European markets. Nearly 33 tons of cocaine transited through West Africa in 2010, including 18 tons transited to Europe with a market value of approximately $1.25 billion.”

    2013-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7090 (2013) · source

16. “I should like at the outset to thank the French presidency of the Security Council for organizing this important meeting on drug trafficking in the Sahel and West Africa. I also wish to thank the Security Council for integrating the fight against drug trafficking and organized crime into the mandates of special political missions and peacekeeping operations in West Africa. I further congratulate the countries of West Africa and Sahel that have demonstrated their firm resolve to meeting the challenges posed by drugs and crime in the region, as well as the international community for its important contribution in this regard. Today, illicit drug trafficking and transnational organized crime threaten peace, security, the rule of law and development in many parts of the world.”

    2013-12-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7090 (2013) · source

17. “Our aim must be to help countries sustain their development, while also ensuring peace and prosperity in the region. To achieve that, UNODC will continue to work with all partners to build the commitment and develop the necessary solutions in this extremely fluid and fast-moving environment.”

    2012-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6804 (2012) · source

18. “In the area of operations, our network of prosecutors against organized crime in Central America, which was set up in 2011, will soon be partnered with a similar network in West Africa. The Global Container Control Programme, which UNODC co-manages with the WCO, now operates on both sides of the Atlantic and is supported by a similar programme at the region's airports. We have also established transnational crime units in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea-Bissau. Through those initiatives, we are building judicial and forensic capacity and, significantly, the ability to intercept money being laundered. West Africa faces complex challenges that represent a severe test for the individual countries and for the region as a whole.”

    2012-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6804 (2012) · source

19. “The ECOWAS Commission has a pivotal role to play in building commitment among Member States, as well as in promoting sustainable reforms. In the area of inter-agency activities, UNODC is currently drafting, with DPA, the Secretary-General's report on the impact of transnational organized crime in West Africa and the Sahel region, as requested by the Council. The United Nations Task Force on Transnational Organized Crime and Drug Trafficking, established by the Secretary-General in 2011, is also promoting inter-agency collaboration and joint actions. UNODC is working with the Peacebuilding Commission to help to mainstream drugs and crime as a threat to peacebuilding across the region.”

    2012-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6804 (2012) · source

20. “In the face of all those challenges, UNODC is building political commitment through regional platforms, especially ECOWAS, developing inter-agency approaches and delivering solutions through its integrated regional programmes. The West Africa Coast Initiative (WACI) offers technical assistance in law enforcement, border management and justice reform, among other areas. Under WACI, we are working at the field level with DPA, the United Nations Office for West Africa, including closely with Ambassador Djinnit, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, INTERPOL and the World Customs Organization (WCO). That is allowing us to combine our mandates and create multidisciplinary responses. I also welcome the renewal of the ECOWAS regional plan of action. UNODC will continue to assist Member States in confronting those transnational issues.”

    2012-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6804 (2012) · source

21. “As Ambassador Djinnit has said, today the northern part of that country is under the control of terrorist and criminal groups. That could further lead to the deterioration of security and good governance in the region. We are closely reviewing possible links between terrorism and transnational organized crime. UNODC fully supports the Council's endorsement of the mediation efforts of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). If successful, we will be able to restart our operations in that country, after they were suspended following the coup d'etat. The situation in Guinea-Bissau remains a serious concern for UNODC. There are fears over the connections between elements of the military forces and illicit drug trafficking, and there is a prevailing culture of impunity hindering effective law enforcement activities.”

    2012-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6804 (2012) · source

22. “That means a greater need for prevention and treatment of drug users, particularly injecting drug users, as well as a focus on HIV/AIDS. Drug money is also being reinvested in the region to feed all sorts of criminal activities and illicit trafficking. There is also a growing threat of piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, where 36 pirate attacks were recorded in 2010, 49 in 2011 and, to date, 16 in 2012. A United Nations assessment mission, mandated by resolution 2018 (2011) to support Benin was co-led by UNODC and the Department for Political Affairs (DPA) in November 2011. As a follow-up, UNODC will address piracy and maritime security as part of a national integrated programme for Benin. UNODC is also carefully monitoring terrorism in the region, which has the capacity to destabilize countries such as Mali.”

    2012-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6804 (2012) · source

23. “Cocaine trafficking in the region is estimated to generate approximately $900 million in profits annually for criminal networks. In addition, there has also been an increase in heroin trafficking. UNODC reported 20 kilograms seized in 2008, 210 kilograms in 2010 and almost 400 kilograms in 2011. Recently, methamphetamine laboratories have also been discovered in West Africa. UNODC is continuing to analyze the overall situation. A Threat assessment for the region, emphasizing the trans-Atlantic route for cocaine, will be issued later in the year. But let me be clear: West Africa is no longer simply a transit route for cocaine from Latin America to Europe; it has also become a final destination. There are now up to 2.3 million cocaine drug users in West and Central Africa, with the majority reported in West Africa.”

    2012-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6804 (2012) · source

24. “Mr. Fedotov: I would like to thank the Security Council for the opportunity to update it on the threats posed by drugs and organized crime in West Africa. With increased drug trafficking, signs of drug production, growing drug consumption, piracy and insecurity, West Africa represents one of the key challenges for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and it continues to be one of our main priorities. Illicit drugs and transnational organized crime are undermining stability in the region and affecting health, democracy and economic development. In 2011, approximately 30 tons of cocaine were trafficked in West Africa. However, only 2.7 kilograms were reported seized, in Guinea-Bissau, during the same period.”

    2012-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6804 (2012) · source

25. “We stand midway between another key set of milestones in the international community's journey to support and assist Afghanistan. There are many challenges in Afghanistan, but I would encourage Member States to do everything possible to communicate the message that illicit drugs and crime are capable of undermining attempts to promote economic and social development in the country. Our work is in the interests of Afghanistan and the victims ofillicit drugs, but it is also in the common interests of the international community.”

    2012-06-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6793 (2012) · source

26. “The Southern Trafficking Operational Plan will couple alternative livelihoods, while also maximizing law enforcement and interdiction efforts. The Maritime Regional Security Initiative will address the movement of trafficking into the sea, in particular between Iran and Pakistan. In May, we started the Regional Programme for South-Eastern Europe, which complements those activities by concentrating on Afghan heroin flowing through Central and West Asia and then on through the Balkans. UNODC is also helping to create international and inter-agency partnerships. One example is the United Nations task force on transnational organized crime and drug trafficking, established by the Secretary-General in 2011. In Dushanbe on 1 June, I co-chaired the first regional meeting of the task force in Central Asia. Today's thematic debate is timely.”

    2012-06-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6793 (2012) · source

27. “The programme is closely linked to the Regional Programme for Afghanistan and Neighbouring Countries. Together, those programmes form part of UNODC's overall strategy to provide a coherent field response to drug trafficking, as well as closer cooperation among regional and international actors. Strengthened border controls are also an essential element of the strategy. Both programmes are connected to such bodies as the Triangular Initiative, the Central Asian Regional Information and Coordination Centre and Operation TARCET, which targets the precursor chemicals necessary to produce opium and heroin. There are also new initiatives that are linked to the Regional Programme. The Criminal Assets Southern Hub initiative will target criminal profits by offering advice to national authorities.”

    2012-06-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6793 (2012) · source

28. “Food zones, such as in Helmand province, are contributing to the decline in poppy cultivation in some areas, but more funds are needed to support such projects. Landowners are now being targeted by a new law that criminalizes the use of their land for poppy cultivation. We now look forward to meaningful implementation of that law. There are also signs that a plant disease may blight this year's crop, as it did in 2010. But plant disease offers no solution to the problem of Afghan's opiates, and stockpiles may well exist. Therefore, we cannot afford to take our foot off the accelerator. At the political level, we are building momentum through the Paris Pact initiative, while developing integrated regional programmes. UNODC'S $ll7-million country programme for Afghanistan was launched in May.”

    2012-06-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6793 (2012) · source

29. “When I met with President Karzai, I stressed the need for the Afghan Government, at every level, to express its commitment to addressing the drug problem as a national priority. The President agreed to that. My visit to opium poppy fields in Badakhshan province showed that eradication efforts must be more vigorously supported by alternative development programmes. Afghan counter-narcotics authorities are demonstrating their own commitment to combating poppy cultivation, but much more needs to be done. As of 19 June, a total of 11,000 hectares ofpoppy fields had been eradicated. That figure represents a 173 per cent increase compared to 2011. However it represents less than 10 per cent of total poppy cultivation area.”

    2012-06-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6793 (2012) · source

30. “The country's poppy-free provinces may also be falling for the second year running, down from 18 to 15. UNODC estimates that trafficking in opiates is a $68-billion business for the criminals. These drugs are responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of people throughout the world every year, but Afghanistan also suffers from the highest rates of opiate prevalence in the world, as well as HIV/AIDS. Drug trafficking also undermines stability in the region, fuels organized crime and corruption, increases drug consumption and spreads HIV/AIDS. As we move towards 2014, we cannot allow avacuum to form that would further encourage the production of opium. That view was affirmed by my own recent visit to Afghanistan and Tajikistan.”

    2012-06-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6793 (2012) · source

31. “Mr. Fedotov: Thank you, Mr. President, for inviting me to address the Security Council. I am pleased to have the opportunity to brief the Council on the latest activities of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) designed to interrupt the flow of drugs and crime in the region. The recent report of the Secretary-General on the situation in Afghanistan and its implications for international peace and security (S/2012/462) specifically recognizes the threat of drugs and crime. Indeed, Afghanistan produces around 90 per cent of the world's opiates, and the southern part of the country is the world's largest opium-producing region. Total global opium production amounted to around 7,000 tons in 2011. In Afghanistan, opium production increased from 3,600 tons in 2010 to 5,800 tons in 2011.”

    2012-06-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6793 (2012) · source

32. “Our advocacy programme complements United Nations Development Programme activities on alternative livelihoods that will use microfinance projects, among others, to show Somali youth that there are sustainable choices other than piracy. Overall, the issue of piracy requires a strong inter-agency approach that addresses not only the law-enforcement and judiciary aspects of the problem, but its root causes in Somalia itself, as well as in the world's financial centres.”

    2012-02-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6719 (2012) · source

33. “UNODC's counter-piracy programme is contributing to criminal justice systems in the region. However, the presence of child pirates within those systems represents a complex issue, on which I must from time to time answer questions from Member States. In the absence of birth certificates or any other forms of identification, courts in Kenya and Seychelles rely on medical advice in determining the age of pirate suspects; as a result, they have determined that seven of the 252 pirate suspects are under 18 - one in Seychelles and six in Kenya. The counter-piracy programme is currently developing an advocacy programme to reach out to Somali youth. It will liaise with key stakeholders, including community leaders, politicians and religious leaders. Television, radio and print media will be used in the programme.”

    2012-02-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6719 (2012) · source

34. “Based on our review and the latest data, which I received just yesterday, 1,116 Somali men are being, or have been, prosecuted for piracy in a total of 20 countries around the world, and 688 in the region. In Kenya, 168 pirates are being, or have been, prosecuted; 50 have been convicted, and 10 have completed their sentence; 17 have been acquitted; and the remainder are awaiting trial. In the Seychelles, 88 pirates are being, or have been, prosecuted; 63 have been convicted; and the remainder are awaiting trial. Mauritius has signed a transfer agreement with the European Union (EU) and will accept the transfer of piracy suspects for prosecution. A joint EU/UNODC programme is now being implemented that will support the Government of Mauritius in prosecuting pirates.”

    2012-02-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6719 (2012) · source

35. “Our piracy prisoner transfer programme supports the transfer of convicted pirates back to Somalia to serve their sentences, while building capacities to ensure that prison conditions meet international standards. UNODC has built a model prison in Hargaisa, Somaliland. Construction of a prison academy has begun in Garowe, Puntland. Construction of a court, a farm and a 500-man prison will soon follow. Under the programme, we are also training prison staff, mentoring staff and prisoners, and monitoring prisons on a full-time basis. In Kenya and Seychelles, UNODC has refurbished prisons, built courtrooms and provided transport. The assistance provided is strengthening the overall criminal justice system in those countries and helping it to become fair, efficient and consistent with human rights standards.”

    2012-02-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6719 (2012) · source

36. “To make our efforts more effective, we need broader international support beyond this region. That is the most efficient way to sever the arteries that sustain piracy. At the same time, of course, we are continuing to address the crime of piracy. UNODC's counter-piracy programme is providing support to regional countries that agree to take piracy suspects. We are working in particular through extensive training programmes for police, prosecutors, judges and prison personnel in Kenya, Seychelles and Mauritius, as well as within Somalia itself, where security conditions allow. The programme started in 2009 with a budget of $500,000, which this year has expanded to $40 million. This year we will be allocating some $16 million to cover a range of technical assistance to the countries of the region.”

    2012-02-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6719 (2012) · source

37. “I can speak in lesser detail, although I will quote some figures. I hope that our figures will ultimately coincide. UNODC Global Programme against Money- Laundering (GPML) is engaged in cooperation with other United Nations agencies and Member States within Working Group 5 of the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia. The Programme is helping to increase awareness of illicit money flows linked to piracy. Central to GPML activities is its support for financial intelligence units and law enforcement agencies in East Africa. We organized two international conferences on illicit financial flows last year - one in Nairobi and another in Djibouti. We are now working, under a programme with the World Bank and INTERPOL, on a report on illicit financial flows linked to piracy, which will be published at the end of this year.”

    2012-02-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6719 (2012) · source

38. “Also, as much as $10 million was paid for the release of a tanker. The ransom money from piracy is flowing into the legal financial system at an increasing rate. The laundering of piracy proceeds is causing steep price rises in the Horn of Africa and the surrounding areas, and the money is also being reinvested in criminal activities that are not limited to piracy. Drug, weapon and alcohol smuggling, as well as human trafficking, also benefit from the proceeds of piracy. Although UNODC is unaware of an ideological link between Al-Shabaab, which has joined Al-Qaida, and pirates, there is strong evidence of cooperation in furtherance of the two groups' aims. Therefore, piracy is creating a clear threat to the stability of the region. I listened very carefully to the statement of my colleague, Ms. O'Brien, and she facilitated my task.”

    2012-02-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6719 (2012) · source

39. “Mr. Fedotov: Resolution 2036 (2012), which was just adopted, stresses the need to investigate, prosecute, imprison when duly convicted pirates and those who illicitly finance, plan, organize and unlawfully profit from piracy attacks. It is an honour for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to update the Council on what UNODC is doing to address this challenge. Since I briefed the Council on this issue last year, the piracy threat has continued to grow. Based on our data, in 2011 pirates received about $170 million in ransom for hijacked vessels and crews. The figure has risen since the previous year, 2010, when ransoms paid amounted to over $110 million. The average payment made to pirates last year was about $5 million, instead of $4 or $3 million in previous years.”

    2012-02-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6719 (2012) · source

40. “I also commend the countries in the region for the efforts they are undertaking to combat these threats. However, additional resources are needed if we are to sustain reforms in the long term and contribute to security sector reform.”

    2012-02-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6717 (2012) · source

41. “The mission's report recommended better coordination among the regional bodies and noted that the United Nations is well placed to achieve that coordination. Working with its partners, UNODC plans to use its West African programme to translate the report's recommendations into firm action. In the Sahel region, where concerns remain about the security situation, UNODC is assisting with the implementation of a regional initiative on judicial cooperation, including Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Burkina Faso. At the national level, UNODC is supporting Mali and Mauritania in the implementation of national integrated programmes and working with the European Union on projects in Nigeria. To conclude, I stress the need for continued political commitment.”

    2012-02-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6717 (2012) · source

42. “UNODC's development of transnational crime units also provides a role model for the future. Such units have been established in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea Bissau. The units in Sierra Leone and Guinea Bissau have both reported seizures. However, our work can not be effective, if it is not based on a clear understanding of the nature and scope of existing challenges. A new threat assessment in the region is being undertaken by UNODC and will be completed soon. It will be focused on the trafficking routes across the Atlantic Ocean. In November 2011 a United Nations inter-agency mission to Benin and Nigeria, co-led by DPA and UNODC, defined the incidence of piracy in the Gulf of Guinea as a major threat to the peace, security and economic interests of States in the region.”

    2012-02-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6717 (2012) · source

43. “Our Central American Network of Prosecutors against Organized Crime and Drug Trafficking, which has been active in Central America since 2011, is an example of how we are strengthening the criminal justice chain through exchanges in information and best practices. Now we have the necessary funding to introduce a similar network of organized crime prosecutors in West Africa. Through such activities we can promote regional connectivity and later ensure that those networks work together across the Atlantic Ocean. That will be an excellent example of South-South cooperation. Other important initiatives include the Global Container Control Programme operating on both sides of the Atlantic and complemented by a similar programme, AIRCOP, for both regions' airports. Those programmes are helping to build capacities across land, sea and air.”

    2012-02-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6717 (2012) · source

44. “The West Africa Coast Initiative (WACI), operating under the umbrella of UNODC's West Africa programme and in partnership with DPKO, the Department of Political Affairs (DPA) and INTERPOL, supports the ECOWAS Regional Action Plan. That Initiative builds upon national and regional ownership and focuses on inter-agency cooperation and the rule of law. WACI will soon be extended to the Republic of Guinea and C6te d'Ivoire and will help sustain regional reforms. I thank our partners for their financial support of WACI. Both UNODC and the United Nations system in general are at the disposal of Member States. We are working to introduce best practices to the region based on our worldwide experience.”

    2012-02-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6717 (2012) · source

45. “Our overall goal is to support and strengthen local institutions and to encourage partnerships among States and regional organizations, such as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). All our activities are based on the principle of shared responsibility. On that subject, I add my voice to the need to renew the ECOWAS Praia Political Declaration and Regional Action Plan beyond 2011, as one of the best means of uniting local and international responses. I also welcome the initiatives of Member States, particularly, the work of Togo, which has adopted a national strategy under the ECOWAS Praia Political Declaration and Regional Action Plan. UNODC stands ready to support activities of the Peacebuilding Commission to mainstream transnational organized crime into the peace and security agendas.”

    2012-02-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6717 (2012) · source

46. “However, piracy and drugs are not West Africa's only concern. Trafficking in human beings, arms and counterfeit medicines have also been reported. The smuggling of migrants and other illegal activities are also growing. In the face of those transnational issues, UNODC's approach has been strategic and tactical. It represents a multidimensional effort that acknowledges the multifaceted nature of those challenges. Our approach recognizes that while the problems in West Africa are local in nature, the solutions are often global. In promoting an inter-agency approach, for example with the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO), we try to deliver practical action through regional programmes, while also designing activities that complement each other across different regions.”

    2012-02-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6717 (2012) · source

47. “South American drug cartels are exploiting regional vulnerabilities in West Africa - poverty, unemployment, lack of border control, weakness of law enforcement structures and endemic corruption. For those criminals, West Africa represents not only the shortest but also the most cost-effective channel for trafficking illicit drugs to Europe. In doing so, they use a range of different transportation methods - second- hand aircraft, large and small ships, and container shipments. West Africa is not only a cocaine transit area. The local consumption market is growing fast, and drug use is increasing across the region. There are up to 2.5 million drug users in West and Central Africa. We also need to understand the extent to which drug trafficking in the region may be linked to piracy off the coast of West Africa.”

    2012-02-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6717 (2012) · source

48. “It is a great honour for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to brief the Security Council on the impact of organized crime on security, stability and development in West Africa and the Sahel region. Indeed, those transnational challenges in the region have evolved from social and criminal problems into threats to security, stability and development. (spoke in English) The West African transit route feeds the European cocaine market, which has in recent years grown fourfold, reaching an amount almost equal to the United States market. We estimate that cocaine trafficking in West and Central Africa generates some $800 million annually.”

    2012-02-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6717 (2012) · source

49. “And the more we have a dialogue with the Security Council and with all the entities and Member States, the more chance we have of succeeding in our efforts to curb drug trafficking and organized crime, which are major destabilizing factors in the twenty-first century. I would like once again to thank the members of the Security Council for their support of UNODC, and, since we have in this Chamber some outstanding contributors to the UNODC budget, I would like to take this opportunity to thank them and express our appreciation for their support.”

    2011-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6668 (2011) · source

50. “Mr. Fedotov: In the United Nations, if one has the floor, one uses it, so I would like to take this opportunity to once again thank you, Mr. President, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal, for having taken the initiative to convene today's meeting of the Security Council. For me, it was very important to listen to the Council's members, whose views and opinions are quite important and relevant to the practical action of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Indeed, we do have our own governing bodies, but administratively we are part of the Secretariat and it is only natural for us to brief the Security Council as often as it so wishes.”

    2011-11-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6668 (2011) · source