5th RASR Workshop Focuses on Stockpile Reduction Policies, Infrastructure and Capacities

The Regional Approach to Stockpile Reduction (RASR) initiative for South East Europe held its 5th Workshop in Durres, Albania on 23-25 April with the support of the Albanian Ministry of Defence

Albanian Minister of Defence, Mr. Arben Imami; UNDP/SEESAC Team Leader a.i., Dr. Ivan Zverzhanovski; and U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission in Albania, Ms. Deborah Jones opened the 5th RASR Workshop

Senior military officers and munitions experts from throughout South East Europe discussing practices on stockpile reduction of unstable and excess conventional weapons and munitions

Participants of the RASR Workshop

Participants visited the demilitarization facility ULP Mjekes - Elbasan

The Regional Approach to Stockpile Reduction (RASR) initiative for South East Europe held its 5th Workshop in Durres, Albania on 23-25 April with the support of the Albanian Ministry of Defence. The RASR initiative is a regional initiative which aims to coordinate and support countries of South East Europe and regional organisations in their efforts to reduce unstable and excess stockpiles of conventional weapons and munitions.

The workshop gathers senior military officers and munitions experts from throughout South East Europe providing them with a platform to share useful practices on stockpile reduction and in that way strengthen local capacities. The RASR initiative is coordinated by the RASR Steering Committee members: ITF Enhancing Human Security, NATO Maintenance and Support Agency (NAMSA), RACVIAC, UNDP/SEESAC and Small Arms Survey with the assistance from the U.S. Department of State. This year, UNDP/SEESAC serves as the RASR chair.

The Workshop in Durres was opened by the Albanian Minister of Defence, Mr. Arben Imami, the U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission in Albania, Ms. Deborah Jones, and UNDP/SEESAC’s Team Leader a.i., Dr. Ivan Zverzhanovski, the current Chair of RASR (see presentation). The first day of the Workshop consisted of 3 sessions, each focused on a specific activity dealing with stockpile reduction.
 

• The National and Regional Policy session provided an in-depth overview of the efforts and best practices in reduction of surplus weapons of Albania, the Albanian Mines and Munitions Coordination Office, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Bulgaria. This session also included presentations from guest speakers from EUFOR, Small Arms Survey and Sterling International.
• The session on Infrastructure offered constructive summaries of national programmes in Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro.
• Finally, the Workshop’s session on Training, Education and Building Capacity saw representatives from the Swiss Armed Forces, the United States Defence Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) and Explosive Safety Board from the U.S. Department of State and UNDP/SEESAC discuss technical assistance and support of demilitarization in South East Europe.

The second day of the Workshop was hosted by the Albanian Ministry of Defense which provided RASR participants with a unique opportunity to visit the demilitarization facility ULP Mjekes-Elbasan and see first-hand the infrastructure and potentials of Albania on its path towards reducing its surplus stocks of ammunition and a creating safer and more secure country.