AS PREPARED
Remarks by Deputy Chief of Mission Shante Moore
CBSI Firearms Technical Working Group Meeting
Tuesday, April 25, 2023
9:00 a.m.
Good morning. I want to take this opportunity to thank CARICOM IMPACS for hosting this Technical Working Group Meeting and collaborating closely with the United States on the preparations and substantive outcomes of this meeting. The United States is pleased to be part of this important effort.
I also would like to thank all of you for participating in this event and showing your commitment to working together to combat illicit trafficking of firearms in the region, this includes our international partners who are with us today. It is only through international cooperation that we will all be able to effectively tackle illicit trafficking in firearms. Working together, we can further our mutual goal of safety and security of our citizens.
Over the next three days, you will help to enhance citizen security by exchanging best practices, gaining a better understanding of new trends, and facilitating cooperation efforts to combat illicit trafficking in firearms in the Caribbean.
More important, you will be developing recommendations on how to strengthen Caribbean priority actions for the consideration of national and regional authorities. We look forward to hearing about your national experiences in strengthening our priority actions and together thinking about regional solutions to curb this growing threat.
As our region has grown more interconnected, so too have criminal organizations that seek to exploit gaps in our interdiction efforts. Faced with pressing transnational threats, it is now more essential than ever that we develop integrated and interoperable response efforts to stay one step ahead of the criminals.
These response efforts must become better coordinated, and this Technical Working Group serves as a unique forum to facilitate discussions on how to improve efforts to enhance cooperation at the national and regional levels.
It is my hope that you all come away from this meeting with a strong and continued commitment to engage in regional cooperation, share information, and further develop interoperability to effectively combat illicit trafficking of firearms.
I would once again like to welcome everyone to this meeting and reiterate the commitment of the United States to working with all of you, both on a bilateral and regional basis, to seek innovative and integrated solutions to the Caribbean’s most pressing challenges. The citizens of our countries deserve a safe, secure, and prosperous Caribbean. I commend you for respective your commitment to working towards that. I wish you much success in this meeting.