ASEANAPOL Advances Collective Action Against Illicit Trade at MASCRADE 2026

New Delhi, India | 17 September 2026

On 17 September 2026, Dr. Kongkrissada Kittithiraphong, Executive Director of the ASEANAPOL Secretariat, joined Plenary Session 1: “Strengthening Economic Resilience: Tackling Illicit Trade for Sustainable Growth” at MASCRADE 2026 in New Delhi, India, contributing the ASEAN regional law enforcement perspective on illicit trade and its links to transnational organized crime.

The session focused on the economic losses caused by illicit trade, including impacts on government revenues, employment, market integrity and economic growth, as well as the need for stronger enforcement mechanisms and international cooperation to detect and disrupt illicit trade and associated financing networks.

Reflecting on the conference theme, “One World, One Fight,” Dr. Kongkrissada highlighted its strong alignment with ASEANAPOL’s approach of bringing the police forces of 11 Member Countries together for collective action:

“ASEANAPOL brings 11 countries together as one team with one vision. This is why the theme ‘One World, One Fight’ strongly reflects our shared purpose of combating counterfeiting and smuggling through collective action.”

Turning to the substance of illicit trade, Dr. Kongkrissada emphasized that smuggling, tax and duty evasion, counterfeiting and the illegal movement of goods should not be viewed merely as isolated commercial crimes. Behind these activities are cross-border networks, illicit financial flows, logistics and transportation routes that may also facilitate wider forms of transnational organized crime.

“Illicit trade is not simply the movement of illegal goods. It is the movement of criminal money, crime networks, and criminal power across borders.”

From the ASEANAPOL perspective, these criminal networks can intersect with ASEANAPOL’s eight core crime areas, including major regional threats such as drug trafficking, trafficking in persons, cybercrime and online scams, wildlife crime, and other forms of transnational crime. The convergence of criminal networks, money, logistics and cross-border infrastructure means that individual crime types cannot always be addressed in isolation.

“Illicit trade is a major challenge for criminal networks, involving transnational smuggling, corruption and many other forms of crime. No single country can effectively tackle this problem alone.”

From Cooperation to Action

To address these interconnected threats, the ASEANAPOL Secretariat applies its 6P Framework — Policy, People, Platform, Procedure, Partners and Progress, with Progress measured by Results.

Policy provides common direction. People strengthen law enforcement capabilities. Platforms connect Member Countries and enable information and intelligence sharing. Procedures translate cooperation into coordinated action. Partners bring together law enforcement agencies, governments, international organizations and the private sector. Progress is measured by tangible Results.

For ASEANAPOL, regional cooperation must therefore move beyond meetings and dialogue. It should translate into information and intelligence sharing, capacity building, coordinated investigations, joint operational action and the disruption of transnational criminal networks.

Through MASCRADE 2026, the ASEANAPOL Secretariat reaffirmed its commitment to mobilizing the collective strength of its 11 Member Countries and strategic partners to transform cooperation into action, and action into measurable results.

Think with Vision, Act with Unity and Deliver with Results – for Together, we keep this region safe.