Director General/Executive Director
Excellencies,
Distinguished participants,
I thank the Austrian EU Presidency for this conference on promoting partnerships and resilience.
UNODC is supporting governments to advance integrated criminal justice responses and border management to counter security threats while protecting people and their rights, including through our dedicated programmes focusing on the Western Balkans and Africa.
As the UN Security Council has repeatedly highlighted, crime and terrorism intersect, threatening international peace and security, human rights and development.
In June, the Council added to its Sanctions List six individuals accused of leading human trafficking and smuggling networks from Libya to Europe.
At least two of the accused are believed to have links with violent extremists.
UNODC is helping to confront such challenges, including through our strategy against migrant smuggling in the Mediterranean and the EU-funded GLOACT to stop human trafficking and migrant smuggling.
With the EU's support, UNODC will soon start a new project on "Dismantling the criminal networks operating in North Africa and involved in migrant smuggling and human trafficking".
The flow of foreign terrorist fighters returning from Iraq and Syria, including through the Western Balkans, represents a serious security threat.
Returnees, in some cases including women and children, pose complex challenges for justice systems and social services.
Related to these concerns is the need to step up prevention of radicalization to violence.
In response, UNODC and the EU are helping to strengthen the legal regimes of South-East European countries to respond to foreign terrorist fighters.
We are cooperating with the EU Radicalization Awareness Network and within the framework of the Western Balkans Counter Terrorism Initiative.
UNODC is also working with UN partners and INTERPOL to enhance border and travel security, as well as manage violent extremist offenders and prevent radicalization to violence in prisons.
We stand ready to reinforce these efforts with the EU and all countries, to strengthen partnerships and build resilience to address shared challenges.
Thank you.