International Forum ‘Current Problems of International Criminal Cooperation and Justice’

On May 22, 2025 a thematic forum ‘Current Problems of International Criminal Cooperation and Justice’ was held in the Vienna International Centre (Austria) on the sidelines of the 34th session of the UN Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice.

The forum was initiated by Belarus. It was organised in partnership with Iran, Nicaragua, Russia and Venezuela.

The event was attended by heads and representatives of diplomatic missions accredited to the UN Office in Vienna, heads and participants of national delegations to the Commission sessions, representatives of international and non-governmental organisations.

The Permanent Representative of Belarus to the International Organisations in Vienna, Andrei Dapkiunas, addressed the meeting with a welcoming speech. ‘In our increasingly divided world, supporters of a certain point of view on the desired political shape of the world are de facto introducing a new criterion of acceptability for international criminal cooperation and justice. This criterion is political attractiveness, which we do not agree with,’ the Ambassador emphasised.

Heads and representatives of law enforcement and legal agencies and institutions of Venezuela, China, Russia and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime made reports during the discussion.

The participants of the thematic briefing comprehensively considered the problems of development of international cooperation in the criminal sphere. They noted the unprecedented politicisation of bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the field of mutual legal assistance and assistance to law enforcement agencies, extradition and other aspects of combating transnational organised crime. Speakers drew attention to the increase in the denial of assistance in criminal cases for political reasons, even in cases involving ordinary violent crimes.

The forum participants stressed the need to prevent the politicisation of international anti-crime cooperation, including extradition and mutual legal assistance, and the activities of relevant international organisations.

Special attention of the forum participants was drawn by the speech of the UN Special Rapporteur, Elena Dovgan, on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights, as unilateral coercive measures are one of the main obstacles to effective international cooperation in criminal cases and in the fight against transnational crime.

At the end of the forum, the participants prepared a summary of the discussion with recommendations for strengthening international cooperation in combating crime.

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