Global Security Newswire

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano last week pledged that her department would work closely with a key European security organization to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction (see GSN, Feb. 10).

"Of the many challenges we share, I believe there are none more pressing than the evolving transnational threats that we confront, including threats from: terrorism and organized violent crime; narcotics smuggling and human trafficking; the proliferation of chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear weapons; and the emerging threats from cyberspace," Napolitano said on Friday during a speech in Vienna, Austria.

She was addressing a meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which has 56 participating nations from Europe, North America and Central Asia.

Homeland Security has already collaborated with various OSCE nations on aviation, cargo and supply chain security, Napolitano said in prepared remarks. The organization has a key role in carrying out U.N. Security Council Resolution 1540, which requires nations to take steps to deter WMD proliferation, she said (see GSN, April 27).

"The OSCE has helped to bolster broad-based cooperation to guard against the possibility that the know-how and materials to build weapons of mass destruction will fall into the wrong hands," according to Napolitano.

She added: "We are encouraged to hear that the OSCE is planning future seminars with the U.N. Office of Disarmament Affairs to address these good practices. DHS looks forward to participating in these events and future partnerships with the OSCE aimed at cross-border interdiction efforts against the spread of WMD" (U.S. Homeland Security Department release, July 1).