Preventing and Countering Transnational Security Threats, Terrorism, and Points of Nexus

Responding to global security and justice threats is critical to UNICRI’s mandate to prevent and combat transnational crime. Strategies to tackle cross-border crime threats and risks, including their growing volume and severity, rely on stability, security, and peace. Erosions in political and economic security and social stability have the potential to act as catalysts for new nexus threats, borne from convergences of conflict, crises, and criminal opportunities.
As part of its strategy to combat transnational security threats and the multiple fronts in which they operate, UNICRI focuses on:

• Protection of public institutions, infrastructure, and soft targets
• Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear safety and security
• Crime and security implications of complex global crises
• Nexus between transnational organized crime and terrorism

UNICRI works with governments, security, and law enforcement agencies across key niche areas and nexus points to develop and implement innovative programmes and practices that combat transnational security threats.
This includes the nexus between organized crime and terrorism and the confluence of criminal and terrorist actors, tactics, and resources. UNICRI looks at rapidly emerging crisis events with global reach, and the implications for new paradigms of risk and criminal opportunities, such as trafficking and CBRN threats in conflict zones. The increasing use of soft targets and critical infrastructure as sites for attack, including from cyber threats, will also remain a point of significant focus.

UNICRI continues to address and mitigate the prevailing and pressing risks of CBRN safety and security, including cyberbio risks, CBRN financing proliferation, and CBRN disinformation.

As a signatory to the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact, and a co-chair of one of its working groups, UNICRI alsos continue its role across the UN system to support Member States to prevent and counter terrorism, through its technical role in translating good practices of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism framework into national policies and action plans.