Initiatives of the WCO

Established in 1952 as the Customs Cooperation Council, the WCO is an independent intergovernmental body whose mission is to enhance the effec-tiveness and efficiency of customs administrations. With 171 Member Govern-ments, it is the only intergovernmental worldwide organization competent in customs matters.

The WCO has been cooperating with the IAEA for a number of years on combating the smuggling of nuclear and other radioactive material. It has been recognized that the primary line of defence in combating illicit trafficking of

this kind would be the various customs administrations of its constituent Member States.

Customs administrations worldwide have two basic functions, namely:

• Collection and protection of revenue;

• Protection of society and the environment.

Customs is the primary agency at international frontiers to interdict the illicit movements of goods, including nuclear and other radioactive material.

As a response to international concern and in the interest of Member State customs administrations, the WCO made increased efforts to assist the administrations in enhancing their enforcement capabilities for preventing, detecting and responding to the illicit trafficking of nuclear and other radioactive material. It was intended to raise awareness for the need to securely monitor and control nuclear and other radioactive material and to establish processes and procedures to detect and respond to illicit trafficking.

The WCO efforts included the following elements:

— Raising the awareness levels of Member State customs administrations and staff;

— Producing and disseminating training material;

— Providing training assistance to Member States;

— Promoting the adoption of a recommendation on Action against Illicit Cross-Border Movement of Nuclear and Hazardous Material in 1997;

— Increasing the necessary exchange of information and intelligence;

— Developing and maintaining a centralized, internet based database and communication tool to facilitate the exchange of information between WCO Member States, including information on radioactive and nuclear material;

— Creating a framework for international cooperation between Member State customs administrations and international bodies such as the IAEA and Interpol, actively involved in similar programmes to combat illicit activities of this kind.

The WCO participated in a series of international conferences and technical cooperation meetings with the common aim of devising tactics and strategies to combat illicit trafficking in radioactive material. This resulted in the establishment of a working relationship between the WCO and IAEA that was eventually formalized in May 1998 under a joint Memorandum of Under-standing (MoU). The MoU established a framework for promoting

cooperation at a national level between national customs administrations and regulatory bodies responsible for the control of radioactive material.

The MoU reflects the role of the WCO in assisting Member State customs administrations worldwide to define control policies and law enforcement programmes which contribute to the fight against illicit trafficking in nuclear and other radioactive material, focusing on prevention, inspection, investi-gation and prosecution and recognizing the need for appropriate raising of awareness and training.

The key features of the MoU can be summarized as follows:

— Article 1 provides that the two agencies consult regularly on policy issues regarding training, technical assistance and other matters of common interest. This article also states that the two agencies will keep each other informed of developments on any projects of mutual interest and, where appropriate, will arrange consultation meetings.

— Article 2 provides that each agency will designate an official to act as the focal point for the maintenance of close contact. It also contains an undertaking for each agency to coordinate efforts and thereby achieve the best use of information relevant to illicit trafficking in nuclear and other radioactive material. It makes provision for the prompt exchange of information, subject to restrictions where there is a need to maintain the confidentiality of certain information. Each agency agrees to invite repre-sentatives of the other agency to meetings where matters of mutual interest are to be discussed.

— Article 3 details arrangements for technical and financial cooperation and provides a framework whereby both agencies may cooperate in the development and implementation of technical assistance programmes and may combine their human and financial resources to undertake such programmes.

— Article 4 details arrangements for joint technical meetings and missions, and in this regard both agencies may, in appropriate cases, agree to jointly sponsor consultations, technical meetings and training courses.

— Article 5 details the administrative arrangements for implementing the MoU.

Since that time, the WCO has jointly sponsored, in conjunction with the IAEA and Interpol, the production of reports [33–35] on the topics of preventing, detecting and responding to illicit trafficking in radioactive material. These reports provide detailed information on various aspects of dealing with the problem of illicit trafficking in radioactive material, and also

its inadvertent movement. They highlight the strategic, tactical and operational concepts adopted jointly by these international agencies.

In addition to the production of these reports, WCO, again in cooperation with the IAEA and Interpol, has jointly sponsored a series of international training courses aimed at raising the awareness of the problems associated with illicit trafficking in radioactive material and providing participants with basic information on radiation safety, detection and response methods. These training courses are continue at the international and national levels.

In 2000, WCO developed an enforcement, communication and cooperation instrument known as the Customs Enforcement Network (CEN).

This is a global enforcement system to support and enhance the ability of customs organizations to fight against transnational organized crime. It allows Member States to process and exchange information electronically and in encrypted form. It also includes a database with a template for nuclear material. The system allows Member States to conduct analyses and produce strategic and tactical intelligence to identify regional and international trends and methods of operation.

As part of a comprehensive package of security and facilitation measures, an electronic Databank on Advanced Technology was developed by a WCO Task Force on Security and Facilitation of the International Trade Supply Chain. The Databank provides detailed and updated information on technical equipment, available in the market place, which can assist Member State customs administrations in making the international supply chain and cross-border movements of persons and goods secure from terrorism and interna-tional criminal activity.

In June 2003, the WCO Council approved the new international Convention on Assistance in Customs Matters, known as the ‘Johannesburg Convention’. This instrument covers all customs offences, including the illicit trafficking of radioactive and nuclear material. It provides a legal basis for the exchange of information and mutual administrative assistance between customs administrations.

Through the task force and subsequent related work, WCO produced a number of measures, instruments and guidelines to secure and facilitate global trade, the most important of which are:

— SAFE Framework of Standards, which provides customs administrations with a number of implementation options and guidelines for securing and facilitating the supply chain;

— A revised version of the WCO Data Model, which includes 27 key data elements which can be used for the identification of high risk consignments;

— Guidelines for cooperation between customs and business;

— Revision of guidelines to the revised Kyoto Convention to take account of security considerations;

— Guidelines for the development of national laws for the collection and submission of customs information taking into account data protection and data security;

— Intelligence and risk management guide;

— Unique Consignment Reference, aimed at providing an origin to destination reference key for all international consignments;

— Guidelines on advance passenger information.

All of the above initiatives aim to increase security and facilitate legal trade. Increased security will help to ensure the integrity of the international supply chain and prevent its use by terrorists to deliver weapons of mass destruction or to otherwise promote criminal activity. Additional information on WCO and its programmes can be found on its web site: http://

www.wcoomd.org

In February 2006, a cooperation agreement was signed between the IAEA and WCO with a view to augmenting international efforts to enhance nuclear security, including the prevention of nuclear terrorism, and to combat illicit trafficking in nuclear and other radioactive material. The agreement includes mutual consultation regarding training and technical assistance, exchange of information, technical and financial cooperation in the interest of the respective activities and coordination of technical meetings and missions.