As a consequence of increasing globalization, national criminal groups are now operating outside their traditional areas, the instances of their operations and illegal activities being numerous, varied and hardly detectable. Organised crime exploits many illicit markets and transcends individual law enforcement agency remits.
Common interpretations of criminal activity in Southeastern Europe include corruption, fraud, money laundering, drugs and small arms trafficking, counterfeiting goods and monetary instruments, vehicles theft, violence, smuggling and trafficking of human beings.
There is no European state to have a monopoly on crime control or on combating abuses of its border management systems; any examination across states will show that these items are shared - that is, while large numbers of people are looking to improve their lives by honest ways, others are practicing their criminal or terrorist activities in Europe or, via Europe, in North America, using any means available to achieve these by breaching national controls.
As a consequence, no European state can solve these huge and common problems only by its own efforts. The process of maintaining borders in the field of international police and customs cooperation plays in the favor of trans-border crime: investigations stop at borders and different legal procedures are blocked, whereas crime organises itself on a large scale.
As the tackling of the threat calls for an innovative, determined and co-ordinated response, the Southeast European Cooperative Initiative Regional Center for Combating Trans-border Crime is a preliminary attempt to change this situation, being uniquely placed to draw upon the resources, knowledge and expertise of all the law enforcement agencies, with a view to developing an effective and smooth-working information exchange mechanism within the region.
It is widely aknowledged that the SECI Regional Center has already significantly contributed to the furtherance of police and customs cooperation within the region, which is intended to become an area of freedom, security and justice. Moreover, the past year's experience proved that the Center is able to provide critical support to law enforcement authorities in their fight against transnational crime.
This is the challenge: if we will succeed in cooperation, collaboration and sharing information and expertise, then the SECI Regional Center is committed to play its full role in Southeastern Europe. All our efforts will be focused in this direction.
Chairman of the Joint Cooperation Committee
of the SECI Center
Alexandru Farcas |
