Minister of Foreign Affairs Meets Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime UNODC

Minister of Foreign Affairs, Fuad Hussein on September 3, 2021 met with the Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and CrimeUNODC, Mrs. Ghada Wali.

The two sides discussed the latest regional and international developments, especially with regard to issues of illegal immigration, human trafficking, prison conditions, rehabilitation programs, drug control and addiction treatment.

The two sides touched on the files of corruption and terrorism as well as the urgent need for a long-term plan to implement economic reforms that contribute to the transition of the Iraqi economy to modern automation that helps detect corruption and prevent money laundering and terrorist financing. 

The two sides also discussed the process of recovering Iraqi funds smuggled abroad and the Iraqi government efforts in this field, as well as cooperation between Iraq and the STAR initiative to restore those funds and cooperation with the Siemens German company to combat corruption.

The two sides discussed also the Container Control Program (CCP) and the possibility that it would give toIraq in organizing the work of border crossings with the help of the United Nations, as well as assisting government agencies in obtaining drug detection devices.

The Minister praised the UNODC activities in Iraq, and expressed his willingness to provide possible assistance to implement the programs designated for Iraq. He invite her to visit Baghdad as soon as possible.

For her part, Mrs. Wali thanked the minister for the visit and extended an invitation to him to attend the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, to be held in SharmEl-Sheikh for its positive impact on helping Iraq in combating corruption and recovering funds.