OSCE Centre supports Regional Workshop on Countering Smuggling

ASTANA, 29 September 2014. – A two-day regional workshop on countering the smuggling of goods began today in Astana.

The event has been co-organized by the OSCE Centre in Astana and Kazakhstan’s Customs Committee of the Finance Ministry in co-operation with the United States Embassy in Astana and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. It aims to build the capacity of customs officials and enhance their co-operation with financial monitoring bodies in combating illicit trade and smuggling by making use of the best international practices.

Over 50 mid-level customs officers from the headquarters and regional branches of Kazakhstan and their counterparts from Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Ukraine discussed with experts from the United Kingdom the methods of countering illicit trade. Special attention was paid to the use of financial intelligence, inter-agency co-operation and the co-ordination of customs administrations as well as  the sharing of real-life experience gathered from criminal cases related to the smuggling of tobacco, alcohol, fuel and other goods.

“The OSCE pays considerable attention to countering the smuggling of goods not only because it undermines the economic sovereignty but it also threatens the national security of every state,” said Ambassador Natalia Zarudna, Head of the OSCE Centre in Astana. “It affects all aspects of public life and state functions because of the considerable losses for national budgets. As one of the most lucrative activities for transnational organized crime, it requires collective efforts to effectively combat it both at the national and international levels,” she added.

Talgat Bashev, Head of the Anti-Smuggling Department of Customs Control Committee of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan, said: "Any country’s security and prosperity largely depends upon its ability to counter illicit trade. Therefore, it is extremely crucial to ensure a high level of effectiveness in investigating cases of smuggling and make inevitable punishment for crime.”

The workshop was conducted within the framework of the Centre’s cross-dimensional efforts to promote good governance, trade facilitation and border security. It was tailored to address the challenges related to Kazakhstan’s forthcoming accession to the World Trade Organization.