OSCE boosts European canine teams in searching out illicit firearms

The OSCE brought together 22 dog handlers from across Europe, including from Ukraine, for a workshop to strengthen their expertise and skills in detecting illicit firearms from 9 to 13 June in Tallinn, Estonia.

The workshop was organized with the European Union Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) under the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT) at the canine training centre of the Estonian Academy of Security Sciences.

Participants trained on better search tactics for hidden firearms in vehicles, buildings and open areas based on their operational needs and environments, and mitigating outside factors, such as weather conditions and intentionally created distractors that may influence dogs’ ability to sniff out the targeted scent.

"To detect a weapon, always analyze the situation and select a search pattern that is most relevant to the specific task and the area of search. Every dog is unique, and you must decide how to make the most of its working abilities both in training and in real work,” shared Atis Ozers, Frontex canine teams assessor.

Sessions also explored current trends related to illicit firearms proliferation, arms traffickers’ modus operandi and methods of concealment.

The workshop was organized as part of the OSCE extrabudgetary project “In Support of Strengthening Capacities of Ukrainian Authorities in Preventing and Combating Illicit Trafficking in Weapons, Ammunition and Explosives in All Its Aspects”, funded by the European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Poland and Slovakia.