Concerned about the serious threat posed by drug trafficking to global security, particularly in Africa, the Security Council yesterday called on the international community to strengthen its cooperation with the United Nations and regional organizations in fighting the scourge.

In a statement read out by Bedouma Alain Yoda, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Burkina Faso, which holds the Council presidency for December, the Council recognized the anti-drug-trafficking measures undertaken by a range of United Nations bodies, from the General Assembly to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and encouraged them to take further action.

The Council also encouraged States to comply with their obligations to combat drug trafficking, to accede to relevant conventions and to investigate and prosecute those involved. It invited the Secretary-General to consider integrating the anti-drug-trafficking fight into conflict prevention strategies, conflict analysis and integrated mission assessments, as well as planning and peacebuilding support.

“Those who run trafficking operations are ruthless and often murderous,” United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said as he helped open a discussion of the problem following the Council’s adoption of the presidential statement. “We must pursue them and thwart them with the full force of the law and international resolve.”

He said the framework for international cooperation was being built around strong, United Nations-backed legal instruments, with the assistance of UNODC and other organizations. However, not all States had become parties to the instruments and they needed to be implemented more effectively. “So far, cooperation between Governments is lagging behind cooperation between organized crime networks,” he said. To counter the global threat, States must share more intelligence, carry out more joint operations, build capacity, and provide mutual legal assistance, he stressed.

Briefing the Council after the Secretary-General’s remarks, UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa said there were new, worrisome developments concerning drugs in both West and East Africa, as well as across the sub-Saharan land mass. The continent was facing a severe and complex drug problem – not only trafficking but also production and consumption. Serious consequences in terms of health, development and security were inevitable.

He said the recent discovery of laboratories in Guinea showed that West Africa was also becoming a producer of synthetic drugs (amphetamines) and of crystal cocaine refined from pasta basica.

In East Africa, 30-35 tons of Afghan heroin were being imported, causing a dramatic increase in heroin addiction and spreading HIV/AIDS in the slums of Nairobi and Mombasa, Kenya’s two main cities.

The two streams of illicit drugs flowing into East and West Africa were now meeting in the Sahara, creating new trafficking routes of unprecedented scale across Chad, Niger and Mali he said.

Drugs were enriching not only organized crime but also terrorists and other anti-Government forces, he warned. To counter that threat, national capacity must be strengthened and information-sharing among affected countries promoted. In addition, he urged the creation of a Trans-Saharan Crime Monitoring Network to improve information, monitor suspicious activity, exchange evidence, facilitate legal cooperation and strengthen regional efforts.

In the ensuing debate, speakers welcomed UNODC’s efforts and called for a greater focus, as well as a more comprehensive framework of international cooperation, for fighting illicit drug trafficking in Africa and around the world. Many also described the extent of the problem in their own subregions, emphasizing the need not only to reduce supply, but also demand.

Most speakers called on the Security Council to pay more attention to the issue from the peace and security perspective. However, Venezuela’s representative said drug trafficking did not fall under the 15-member body’s jurisdiction and must be fought in a way that gained the approval of the entire international community, through United Nations units that reported to the General Assembly.

Austria’s Vice-Minister for European and International Affairs described the results of a donor round table that his country had co-hosted last week, with a view to increasing support for the Regional Action Plan on illicit drug trafficking and organized crime of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).