News and press releases

The OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek, in co-operation with the Conflict Prevention Centre/Forum for Security Cooperation of the OSCE Secretariat, successfully concluded the second module of the training course “Combatting Illicit Trafficking of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW), Ammunition, and Explosives” in Osh. Held from 18–21 November 2024, the training aimed to strengthen the capacities of Kyrgyzstan's Border Service officers in SALW identification, post-seizure record-keeping, information sharing, and tracing.

Border officers from Albania State Police participated in a study visit to Milan, Italy from 13 to 15 November 2024. The study visit was organized by the OSCE’s Transnational Threats Department, in close co-operation with the Permanent Mission of Italy to the OSCE and Polizia di Frontiera – Aeroporto Malpensa, for three officers, including one woman and two men. The visit focused on document checks and border control operations at airports, including how first and second-line document officers can effectively cooperate to stop criminals attempting to travel on forged documents.

SKOPJE, 5 November 2024 — Organized crime poses an urgent threat in South-Eastern Europe, with illegal arms trafficking and migrant smuggling jeopardizing regional and global security. To confront these issues and drive concerted action across the region, the OSCE Mission to Skopje, in co-operation with EU4FAST, is hosting a High-Level Police and Customs Co-operation Conference in Skopje from 5 to 7 November.

On 1 November 2024, nineteen officers from the Tajik Border Troops successfully completed an intensive three-week Operational Planning Training (OPT) course. This achievement marks a significant milestone in the OSCE’s efforts to strengthen border security along the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border.

The OSCE Presence in Albania has strengthened efforts in the fight against human trafficking by organizing a series of six local-level meetings with prosecutors and police officers throughout September and October 2024. The meetings aimed to address challenges in investigating and prosecuting human

On 30 and 31 October, the OSCE Transnational Threats Department's Border Security and Management Unit in close co-operation with the Spanish National Police hosted an interactive training course on gendered aspects of transnational threats in Madrid. The event brought together 27 first- and second-line border security officers from Albania, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Montenegro, Spain and Tunisia.

The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (Mission), in co-operation with the Center against Trafficking in Works of Art (CPKU) and the Agency for Education and Professional Training Mostar (AEPTM), organized a three-day training on combatting illicit trafficking in cultural property in BiH for representatives and experts from law enforcement agencies, the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH, cultural ministries, academia, and NGOs.