Vienna, Austria, 15 April 2026 – The Montreal Protocol Dialogue on Action against Illegal Trade was organized by the UNEP OzonAction in cooperation with the UNEP Green Customs Initiative (GCI) Secretariat and hosted by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on 15 April 2026 in Vienna, Austria.
The meeting brought together enforcement entities at the global and regional levels, including UNODC, the World Customs Organization (WCO), the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), UNEP Law Division, the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (EUROPOL), the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), the European Union Network for the Implementation and Enforcement of Environmental Law (IMPEL), Administrative Cooperation Groups (AdCo), the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), Ambiendura, the Ozone Secretariat and the Secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions.
The meeting, convened back-to-back with the GCI partners’ meeting, provided an opportunity to bring together key actors working on Montreal Protocol implementation and enforcement matters to promote practical cooperation. The dialogue aimed to exchange information on current enforcement activities, improve understanding of the scale and nature of illegal trade, and identify opportunities for future cooperation.
Following an overview presentation on illegal trade in the context of the Montreal Protocol delivered by OzonAction, participants provided updates on their activities related to enforcement and illegal trade.
Throughout the dialogue, participants emphasised the importance of improved data collection, mandatory or enhanced reporting, stronger penalties where appropriate, digital traceability tools, risk profiling, targeted capacity-building, and deeper cooperation among international, regional, and national partners. The value of joint enforcement operations, platforms for intelligence-sharing, and collaboration across Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) was also underscored.
OzonAction also introduced the outline of a report currently under preparation on illegal trade and invited participants to contribute relevant data, case studies, and feedback on the draft outline.
For more information:
Tatiana Terekhova
Senior Programme Management Officer
UNEP OzonAction
