Crime

The UN Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substance aims to promote cooperation between the States Parties to enable them to deal more effectively with the various cross-border aspects of the illicit trade in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances (Article 2.1). With the aim of strengthening and promoting international cooperation for the prevention of and judicial measures against trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances criminalized under the Convention. The Convention also regulates raw materials such as precursors (acetic anhydride, ephedrine and others) that are unregulated under the Single Convention and Convention on Psychotropic Substances, and further provides for new international investigative cooperation and mutual legal assistance (Article 6, Article 7, Article 12, Article 16, Article 17, etc.).

• Adopted in December 1988, entered into force in November 1990. 192 States Parties as of July 2024.
• Japan signed in December 1989, deposited its instrument of ratification in June 1992 and it entered into force in September 1992 in Japan.

(Official archive) New Convention on Narcotic Drugs (PDF)

Scope of control (Table I - II): list with additional substances adopted at the 67th session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (to be entered into force on 3 December 2024) (PDF)

The controlled substances in this Convention are precursor chemicals of new psychoactive substances in Table I and their raw materials and chemicals in Table II to manufacture such dangerous substances.

The Commission on Narcotic Drugs was established in 1946 as a subsidiary body of the UN Economic and Social Council and is composed of 53 members elected regionally from among the countries that have ratified the three international drug conventions. Japan has been a member country continuously since 1961, except for the term of 2010-2011, and has actively contributed to various modalities of discussion of the CND.

The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) is the independent and quasi-judicial monitoring body for the implementation of the United Nations international drug control conventions. The Board was established in 1968, in accordance with the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961, under the Economic and Social Council. The Board consists of 13 elected members (in personal capacity) who monitor and control the production, distribution and consumption of drugs covered by the three international conventions to prevent illicit trade and abuse.

The UN Special Session on Narcotic Drugs was held in June 1998, in New York, as the first time in 18 years to discuss newly emerged drug control issues and related matters, for which collected action should be further enhanced globally. At the Assembly, “Our joint commitment to effectively addressing and countering the world drug problem (Resolution A/S-30/L.1 (PDF) )” and other documents were adopted.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) was established in 2002 through the merger of the United Nations Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) and the Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Programme (CPCJP), which were established under UN General Assembly resolutions in 1990 and 1991. The secretariats of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) and the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) have been embedded as administrative entities in the UNODC to assist in the exercise of its treaty-related functions.

• Reference: Overview of the UN framework for combating drugs (Control of Drugs | United Nations Centre for Public Information). (Japanese)

Since the 1986 Tokyo Summit, the world drug problem has been addressed as one of the global agendas, and various countermeasures have been taken at high level discussions to establish, enhance and strengthen international cooperation, as described in the G7 statements and other documents.

• 2024 G7 Summit (Presidency: Italy) 'G7 Leaders' Statement on the threat of synthetic drugs' (PDF)
• 2024 G7 Summit Justice Ministers' Meeting (9-10 May) 'Venice Declaration' (PDF)

Led by the United States of America, the Coalition was established on 7 July 2023, by the adoption of a Ministerial Declaration with the aim of jointly addressing the global threats and the necessity to strengthen international collaboration to counter the emerging threats caused particularly by synthetic drugs, such as fentanyl-analogues and cocktail drugs including nitazene, ketamine or other illicitly manufactured substances. The problem of illicit synthetic drugs has been under critical scrutiny for some time, but in recent years, its rapid spread in the dark markets and powerful psychotropic impacts in small quantities cause serious health harms. The expansion of the drug trafficking market and smuggling, manufacturing and illicit trade of chemicals and precursors used as raw materials for synthetic drugs bring enormous public health risks into the communities, and such synthetic drug issues are not only for countries of final destination, as there are no physical and e-commerce borders for drug trafficking and organized crime activities.

• Global Coalition Against the Threat of Synthetic Drugs (US Secretariat website).
• US State Department website: Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats

Japan has agreed to collaborate with the Coalition member countries and organizations, delivering the video message by Mr. Hayashi, former Minister of Foreign affairs on the occasion of the Coalition establishment on 7 July 2023. Since then, Japan has been participating in discussions of the Coalition working groups that is an inter-ministerial alliance for working on global drug issues.

The Dublin Group was established in Dublin, Ireland, in 1990 with the aim of deepening mutual understanding and coordinating drug-related aid policies and supporting strategic resource allocation among major industrialized countries. Participating countries and organizations are Japan, the USA, Canada, Australia, Norway, 27 EU countries and UNODC, which hold biannual General Meetings (in Brussels) to exchange information and share discussions consolidated at the Regional Dublin meetings.

The Mini Dublin Group Meetings bring together counter-narcotics officers from relevant national agencies, local embassies and missions of approximately70 countries participating in the Dublin Group to share information and discuss national and regional status of drug-related development activities, together with the updates of illicit drug production and manufacturing and initiatives at transit points. The Mini Dublin Group Meetings aim to exchange information on the latest drug issues and pitfall if any in each country to make recommendations, so as to maximise the effectiveness of the overall drug response. By coordinating the aid policies of donor countries and agencies in response to the recipient country’s assistance needs, the meetings at the national and regional level are held autonomously, and the discussions compiled in such national, regional meetings are reported to the Dublin Group General Meetings held in Brussels, Belgium.

Japan is co-chairing with Australia for the Southeast Asia and China Regional Group every other year, and reports on information on bi- and multi-donor activities in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and Viet Nam at the Dublin Group General Meeting held annually (in Autumn).

The Paris Pact Initiative (PPI) Forum is a meeting of the countries voluntarily participating to address the issue of Afghan narcotics, which has been organized under the leadership of France and Russia. In June 2006, the 2nd Ministerial Meeting was held in Moscow and the 'Moscow Declaration' was adopted. At the Ministerial Conference held in 2012, the Vienna Declaration (PDF) was adopted as a framework for information sharing and discussions on the issues based on the below listed four themes (Pillars), which set out common and shared tasks and roadmaps for participating countries and organizations. The Vienna Declaration served as an important information-sharing platform to update the actual situation of illicit activities related to Afghanistan-originated drugs mainly in the neighbouring countries and regions and efforts to strengthen coordination and cooperation, but activities came to an end in May 2024.

• Pillar (i) Regional cooperation
• Pillar (ii) Financial flows related to illicit drug trafficking
• Pillar (iii) Preventing diversification of precursors
• Pillar (iv) Reducing drug abuse and dependence