The WCO Strategic Trade Control Enforcement (STCE) Programme hosted an Operation COSMO 2 Global Planning Seminar at WCO Headquarters in Brussels, from 9 to 11 January 2018.
The Seminar was aimed at reviewing the progress made by the Customs community in establishing capacity to address the proliferation of Weapons of Mass destruction (WMD) and related items since the WCO’s first Operation Cosmo in 2014, and plan further Customs operational activities to counter illicit trafficking in WMD.
The keynote speakers, Dr. Kunio Mikuriya, WCO Secretary General, Ms. Ana Hinojosa, Director of the WCO Compliance and Facilitation Directorate, and Ms. Sandra Raca, UN 1540 Group of Experts, highlighted the crucial role played by Customs in ensuring economic prosperity, competitiveness and development while, at the same time, protecting society and curbing the proliferation of strategic technologies. Ms. Raca highlighted Customs’ obligations under UN Security Resolution 1540, and praised the WCO for its leadership in addressing capacity gaps through its STCE Programme and through instruments such as the Punta Cana Resolution (2015).
This event was attended by 120 participants representing 96 WCO Members, Regional Intelligence Liaison Offices (RILOs) and international organizations, including the UN 1540 Committee Group of Experts, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), INTERPOL, the Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction, and the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism.
Dynamic, professional and extremely intensive discussions took place during the three-day Seminar, essentially focusing on the future planning of operational activities and highlighting and sharing Customs best practices in relation to strategic trade controls. Members emphasized the assistance provided to them by the WCO through the STCE Implementation Guide, as well as the national training workshops delivered under the STCE Programme. In addition, INTERPOL, OPCW and IAEA agreed to work more closely with the WCO on strategic trade control matters and to support future operational activities.