VIENNA, 14 November 2008 (UNODC) - The Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Antonio Maria Costa, met yesterday with Victor Ivanov, Director, Federal Drug Control Service of the Russian Federation . They discussed international cooperation to counter drug trafficking from Afghanistan and opportunities for UNODC to cooperate with Russia in the field of counter-narcotics.
Mr. Costa welcomed Russia's support for a pilot project to train counter-narcotics and law enforcement personnel in Central Asia and Afghanistan. "This is a clear demonstration of Russia's will to bolster security in Afghanistan and beyond its borders." said Mr. Costa.
He also thanked Russia for its support for the Paris Pact, an initiative launched in 2003 to promote coordinated measures to counter narco-trafficking in and from Afghanistan, as well as a project to strengthen security on the Tajik-Afghan border.
Mr. Ivanov voiced concern about "relentless flows of illegal drugs", including through the so-called "northern route" crossing CIS countries and onward to Western Europe. «We consider UNODC an important partner in fighting the Afghan drug threat and support UNODC's cooperation with the regional security mechanisms active in Central Asia, such as the Collective Security Treaty Organization and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization ».
For information, please contact:
Mr. Walter Kemp
Spokesman and Speechwriter
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
Telephone: (+43-1) 26060 5629
Mobile : (+43-699) 1459-5629
E-mail: walter.kemp@unodc.org
