21 September 2020, online: The UNODC Global Firearms Programme (GFP) regional team for South Eastern Europe (SEE) and Ukraine participated in a webinar for frontline officers, who will take part in the Joint Action Day (JAD) – an international operation of law enforcement agencies on countering illicit firearms trafficking. The webinar was organized by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (FRONTEX) and the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT).
The meeting was attended by members of law enforcement agencies from the EU, Moldova, Ukraine and the Western Balkans. Representatives from FRONTEX, EMPACT, EUROPOL, UNDP/SEESAC, INTERPOL and UNODC delivered presentations on subjects relevant to the JAD operation. They provided a situation summary on the illicit firearms trafficking between EU and the SEE jurisdictions, including modus operandi and trafficking routes. In addition, FRONTEX introduced the Handbook on Detection of Firearms for Border Guards and Customs officers, which is a useful tool for provision of capacity building activities.
The UNODC GFP expert provided an overview on illicit firearms trafficking to, across and from the EU, including examples on how the efforts of the frontline officers contribute to the development of analytical tools used for operational and political decision making as well as an overview of the activities in support of data collection and analysis under the UNODC regional project for the Western Balkans “Criminal Justice Response to Arms Trafficking”. These activities are supported under the Western Balkans SALW Control Roadmap Multi-Partner Trust Fund by Germany, UK, Netherlands, France, Sweden and Norway.
