Time frame: October 2025 – October 2028
Donor: U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) – National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
Budget: EUR 3 million
Beneficiary region: Southeast Asia and the Pacific
The situation
Southeast Asia remains a critical transit corridor for the illicit trafficking of firearms, munitions and dual-use materials — including nuclear and radiological sources — exploited by terrorist organizations and transnational crime networks. Several countries face persistent threats from armed insurgent groups seeking to acquire potential weapons of mass destruction.
Existing law enforcement capacities are often fragmented, under-resourced and lack integrated detection capabilities or cross-border intelligence-sharing mechanisms. A sustained, intelligence-driven and technologically enhanced response is urgently needed to close critical gaps in regional security.
Project aims
To reduce the threat of proliferation, smuggling, diversion, trafficking and illicit acquisition of weapons — including firearms, munitions, and nuclear/radiological materials — by terrorist and organized crime groups in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, through:
• Enhanced national preparedness and institutional capacity;
• Improved intelligence sharing and criminal analysis;
• Coordinated, intelligence-led law enforcement operations.
The project will address the following priority areas:
• Strengthening coordination among law enforcement agencies at national and cross-border levels;
• Enhancing detection capabilities for weapons, including nuclear and radiological materials at checkpoints;
• Expanding data sharing and analytical capacity to map and disrupt weapons trafficking networks;
• Institutionalizing best practices for firearm recovery, identification, tracing and investigation;
• Reinforcing the integration of counter-terrorism approaches within investigations into conventional weapons smuggling.
The project will focus on 14 countries in southeast Asia and the Pacific: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar (subject to restrictions), Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Vietnam, Japan, Korea (Rep. of), Papua New Guinea.
Project Activities
• Establish National Weapons Investigation Teams (WITs) in targeted countries, integrating police, customs, forensics, prosecutors and intelligence agencies;
• Train law enforcement practitioners on:
- INTERPOL’s Firearms Recovery Protocol
- Use of iARMS, IFRT and IBIN,
- Detection, recovery and documentation of weapons and nuclear/radiological materials
• Conduct major operational events;
• Produce criminal analysis reports and regional risk assessments;
• Develop sustainable frameworks and standard operating procedures for long-term use by law enforcement.
