The 34th session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) took place from May 19 to 23, 2025, in Vienna, Austria. The Commission serves as the principal policymaking body of the United Nations in the field of crime prevention and criminal justice. CCPCJ provides member states with a forum for the exchange of expertise, experience, and information to develop national and international strategies and identify priorities in the fight against crime. The Office for Drug Control of the Government of the Republic of Serbia participated by remotely accessing all plenary sessions and discussions.
This important session attracted representatives from member states, experts, and international organizations with the aim of addressing new, emerging, and evolving forms of crime and their consequences, as well as ways to enhance international cooperation in combating crime.
The topics of this year’s session covered some of the most significant and pressing issues threatening global security, such as environmental crime, illegal trade in commercial goods, human trafficking, and crimes targeting cultural heritage. Special attention was given to global threats arising from the rapid development of technology and transnational criminal networks that operate across borders.
During the discussions, the importance of creating innovative cooperation mechanisms among member states was emphasized, along with the strength of international agreements in combating crimes that rapidly adapt to new social and economic conditions. Key topics also included environmental protection, with a special focus on legal protection of natural resources and combating the illegal trade of hazardous and toxic waste, as well as rights and strategies for preserving cultural heritage.
Professor Dr. Ambassador Žarko Obradović had the opportunity to present Serbia’s position. In the thematic discussion on combating new, emerging, and evolving forms of crime, including crimes that threaten the environment, smuggling of commercial products, trafficking in cultural property, and other criminal activities related to cultural goods, Ambassador Žarko Obradović highlighted how environmental crime represents one of the fastest-growing areas of transnational crime.
He explained how environmental crime is characterized by high profits and low risks for those involved in activities such as timber trade, wildlife trafficking, black market substances damaging the ozone layer, and illegal trade in hazardous and toxic waste. Transnational environmental crime is marked by criminal networks engaged in trafficking specific types of goods, the involvement of criminal groups involved in other forms of illicit trade, and, in some cases, the participation of politically motivated organizations using these activities to finance other operations. Therefore, it is essential to establish innovative cooperation mechanisms to prevent, combat, and punish illicit trade and smuggling to ensure effective action against this form of cross-border crime, emphasized Ambassador Žarko Obradović.