On December 11, 2023, EU ACT II and CADAP7 organised a meeting with the objective of discussing how EU initiatives can operationalise the priorities of the Drugs Dialogue, as well as how they can continue to materialise the EU’s commitment to implementing the Joint Roadmap for Deepening Ties between the EU and Central Asia, which was endorsed by both parties in October 2023.
The opening remarks of the EU-ACT event were made by the Head of Unit of Peace and Stability – Global Threats, Foreign Policy Instrument of the European Commission, who underscored the goal of the meeting which was to establish priorities in the fight against organised crime and drug trafficking in Central Asia.
Participants included Central Asian partners and the representatives of the EU funded projects working directly or indirectly in drug trafficking in the region such as EU ACT, CADAP, BOMCA and LEICA, as well as representatives from the UN and CARICC.
The discussions emphasised the importance of evidence-based approaches and highlighted achievements in regional cooperation, particularly in areas like the interception of precursors, law enforcement training, and forensics related to drug issues.
The meeting also provided the opportunity for discussions on how to incorporate lessons learned from other regions, such as in Latin America via COPOLAD or in Africa via the ROCK project, and how they could be incorporated into a Central Asian context.
The following issues were mentioned by participants for projects to consider and possibly operationalise:
- Reinforce cooperation for balanced and integrated drug strategies.
- Best practices on health consequences of drug use.
- Synthetic Drugs and precursors.
- Cross border investigations and money laundering from synthetic drugs and FATF standards.
- Functioning of darknet markets and countermeasures for policymakers and law enforcement.
- Reinforced knowledge exchange.
- Enhanced capacity building.
- Comprehensive rights-based approach, advocating for preventive measures, treatment, and harm reduction over criminalisation.
This Side event served as a pivotal platform for reinforcing international cooperation among partners in the region to address drug trafficking and organised crime, providing an opportunity to improve project coordination and to plan joint activities for the coming years.
