IRU - Welcome Speech by Martin Marmy, IRU Secretary General

Conference Programme
"CONTRIBUTION OF THE TIR SYSTEM TO THE SECURITY OF TRADE AND TRANSPORT"

Conference Hall of the Federal Customs Service of the Russian Federation (FCS RF)
1-a, Komsomolskaya Ploschad, Moscow
13-14 March 2007

First of all, in the name of ASMAP and all IRU members, I would like to express my gratitude to the Director General of the WCO, Mr Danet, for the initiative to convene such a timely Conference.

I would like also to associate to my thanks the UNECE for their participation and support and finally the Federal Customs Services of the Russian Federation, headed by Mr Belyaninov, for hosting this Conference in these excellent facilities.

As you know, the TIR System has been successfully serving trade and transport for almost 60 years.

Over those 60 years, the IRU, in partnership with the UNECE, has been the implementing partner of this unique international Convention. Over those 60 years, due to the efficiency of the PPP foreseen by the TIR Convention, the TIR System, which initially served a few thousand road transport operations per year between the 6 founding countries in Western Europe, facilitated last year 3.6 million transport operations between 55 countries, from Lisbon to Vladivostok, from Helsinki to Bandarabas.

In the meantime, over the last few years, we have witnessed the increasing globalisation of trade, rendering the need for efficient, rapid and secure transport, even more essential.

In this context, the TIR System has demonstrated its unparalleled ability to accompany those radical changes in the world economy.

The security concerns expressed in various international and regional bodies have led the WCO to take the lead to define and adopt common SAFE standards at international level through the framework of standards to secure and facilitate global trade.

The IRU, which has been associated to this important work, has highlighted that the TIR Convention meets the vast majority of the security requirements set out in the WCO framework of standards, in particular with regard to mutual recognition and accredited economic operators.

At the last IRU General Assembly, the need for strengthening the Public / Private Partnership in the management of the TIR Convention has been reaffirmed from all the IRU Membership through the unanimous adoption of an IRU Resolution. At this occasion, the President of ASMAP, Yuriy Sukhin, proposed to convene a Conference to demonstrate how the TIR System has significantly contributed, through Public / Private Partnership, to increase security thanks to the development of the international control system. SafeTIR has been implemented in partnership by the IRU, national Customs Authorities and national Associations. Its further improvement will to allow all Contracting Parties to provide real time transmission of Customs termination data and real time validation of the status of TIR Carnets.

This Conference, spearheaded by the WCO, clearly answers the wishes expressed not only by the IRU members but also by numerous Head of Customs. It is why I am sure that the prestigious speakers from the public authorities and trade sectors will demonstrate the need to reinforce the Public / Private Partnership in the management of the TIR Convention, especially in the indispensable efforts to computerise the TIR procedure on the basis of the national and international IT systems already existing and functioning.

I do hope that, in partnership with the UNECE and the Contracting Parties, this goal will be achieved, thus ensuring the continuing success and development of the TIR System in the future.

The WCO framework of standards, to successfully enhance both facilitation and security, must be effectively implemented. This can only be achieved through mutual recognition of the controls required by the WCO framework of standards. I am convinced that this Conference will demonstrate that the TIR Convention already provides de facto such indispensable mutual recognition.

The TIR Convention, through its controlled access and mutual recognition, can be instrumental in guaranteeing the WCO framework of standards valuable success and achievement in its 55 Contracting Parties.

I look forward to debating those issues with you, and wish you all a very fruitful Conference.