Political Declaration of G8 Ministers on Illegal Drug Trafficking

Ministerial and Other Meetings > G7/8 Justice and Interior Ministers

Political Declaration of the Ministers Responsible for the Fight Against Illegal Drug Trafficking

Ministerial G8+ Meeting on Drug Trafficking
May 10, 2011, Paris
[Français]

1. We, the Ministers responsible for the fight against illicit drug trafficking, the Commissioner of the European Union in charge of internal affairs and the heads of international and regional organizations, are concerned by the scale of the problem and its harmful consequences for societies, we affirm our commitment to curbing the transatlantic trafficking of cocaine, as part of the world drug problem. The drug problem has a global nature and continues to pose a serious threat to the health, safety and well-being of all humanity. The world drug problem undermines economic development and democratic institutions and may threaten international stability. Therefore, we have a common and a shared responsibility to our partners to reduce our own domestic drug abuse, in particular cocaine abuse, and take action against the drivers that fuel the transatlantic cocaine trade.

We recognize the legal framework provided by the three United Nations conventions regarding the control of drugs of 1961, 1971 and 1988, as well as the UN Convention against Transnational Organised Crime, the UN Convention against Corruption and the specific conventions concerning the fight against corruption.

We recall the Political Declaration and Plan of Action on International Cooperation towards an Integrated and Balanced Strategy to Counter the World Drug Problem adopted at the High-Level Segment of the United Nations Commission on Narcotics Drugs in 2009 (Vienna).

The fight against the world drug problem rests on several principles and we reaffirm our commitment to these. The first of these principles is that of common and shared responsibility among all of the countries affected by the different aspects of this transnational scourge (production, consumption, transit).

Secondly, the global drugs problem must be dealt with using an integrated approach that aims to reduce, on the one hand, supply (cultivation, production, manufacture and trafficking of drugs) and on the other, demand (consumption and the associated health and social problems).

Thirdly, the strengthening of international and regional cooperation and the principle of common and shared responsibility applies with regard to all illicit drugs. In this context, we recall the commitment of those of us involved in regional and international mechanisms already existing to fight illicit drugs. The countries that are partners of the Paris Pact, an initiative aiming at combating opiates originating from Afghanistan, welcome the ministerial meeting scheduled for the autumn of 2011. We also stress our determination to strengthen international and regional cooperation in the fight against the diversion of chemical precursors and synthetic drugs, including Amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS) and all illicit drugs included in the 1961 UN Convention.

We welcome the important role played by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), European Union, Organisation of American States (OAS), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and all other relevant organizations, including Interpol and the World Customs Organization (WCO) with regards to technical assistance to third countries that request it. We welcome the role played by the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) in the monitoring of the implementation of the three United Nations conventions of 1961, 1971 and 1988 regarding the control of drugs.

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2. The development of illicit drug trafficking, in particular the trafficking of cocaine, is of concern not only because it is accompanied by a rise in violence, but also because it fuels domestic consumption, regional instability and transnational organized crime. It enriches and strengthens organized crime networks involved in an array of criminal activities (e.g., trafficking in firearms and persons, money laundering). It undermines rule of law and good governance and it weakens the state institutions, in particular the judicial systems. It disrupts and undermines legal economies, feeds corruption and diminishes national assets, inhibiting the sustainable development of societies.

To address these transnational threats, we are determined to continue to promote integrated and balanced strategies for the reduction of demand and supply that respect human rights and the environment, in cooperation with the relevant international and regional organizations and civil society.

We support the implementation of strategies for the reduction of supply, notably through the implementation of actions of international, regional and transregional cooperation, fully respectful of the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity of States.

We encourage the exchange and implementation of best practice in the area of demand reduction and the implementation of joint policies for prevention, treatment, rehabilitation and reintegration, as well as ensure their accessibility.

We encourage the implementation of social and economic policies aimed at preventing violence and guaranteeing the security of citizens, in cooperation with civil society, including NGOs.

We recognize that elimination or significant reduction of the illicit cultivation of crops used for the production of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances is an important element of addressing the global drug problem.

We encourage the implementation of alternative development programmes in the framework of sustainable development, targeted to populations at risk and vulnerable to becoming involved in activities related to illicit drug problem, especially in vulnerable areas.

We consider the fight against corruption, money laundering and illicit financial flows, in particular through the confiscation of criminal assets, to be a matter of priority.

To facilitate these above initiatives, we acknowledge the key role of capacity building efforts to address threats of transnational organized crime, bilaterally and multilaterally, in cooperation with the UNODC and other multilateral organizations concerning technical assistance to the most seriously affected countries. We acknowledge the leading role played by the European Union in providing technical assistance for the fight against the world drug problem.

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3. In this context, we commit to intensifying our cooperation to cope with the global drugs problem including illicit drugs trafficking such as the transatlantic trafficking of cocaine. To this end, countries parties will direct their efforts according to the attached Action plan which content will be implemented voluntarily with full respect of signatories' countries internal legislation and their sovereign actions in this forum or other for a and cooperation mechanisms.

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Source: French Presidency of the G8 and G20

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