OSCE-UNODC expert meeting addresses financial flows linked to illicit Afghan opiates

Countering the illicit financial flows linked with Afghan opiates trafficking was at the centre of a meeting by the Expert Working Group of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime’s (UNODC) Paris Pact Initiative hosted by the OSCE on 30 May 2022.  

Among other topics, participants discussed the security situation in Afghanistan, opiate trafficking, money and service transfer services (Hawala), inter-agency and international co-operation. They also examined challenges and developments to counter money laundering and asset recovery initiatives. Moreover, participants considered technical assistance needs and new capabilities, which can enhance the understanding and disruption of illicit financial flows.

“Afghanistan’s economy has been deteriorating over the past nine months. Illegal narcotic cultivation, production, and trafficking are further fueling corrosive and destructive effects, such as generation and utilization of illicit financial flows into and out of Afghanistan and the broader region” said Alexandre Schmidt, Chief, Regional Section for Europe, West and Central Asia at the UNODC.

“Working together, Paris Pact partners have delivered to the partnership through co-ordinated, prioritized operational recommendations on all four thematic Pillars of the Paris Pact, including on tackling financial flows linked to Afghan opiates” said Riku Lehtovuori, Paris Pact Initiative Coordinator at the UNODC. “Just recently, Paris Pact Initiative partners have launched the discussion of methamphetamine production and trafficking originating in Afghanistan, thus highlighting the added value of the Paris Pact as a unique platform promoting a comprehensive approach to addressing new and emerging threats” he concluded.

“The Afghan drug trade is linked with the insurgency, corruption, financing terrorism and illegal economies. As we know, drug traffickers rely on the services of financial professionals to manage their assets. No country or international organization can effectively address this threat singlehandedly. To tackle it we should work together to increase our collective capacities, build strategic partnerships and strengthen operational impact,” said Dennis Cosgrove, on behalf of the OSCE Transnational Threats Department (TNTD).

The event was organized in line with the OSCE-UNODC Joint Action Plan for 2020-2022, as well as following the practice of co-operation at policy and expert level in the framework of the Paris Pact Initiative with regards to combating the trafficking in illicit opiates originating in Afghanistan.

The Paris Pact Initiative is a broad international coalition made up today of 58 partner countries and 23 organizations, for combatting illicit traffic in opiates originating in Afghanistan.