The black market in wildlife trafficking and trade in tobacco are destabilising regions and prolonging civil wars around the world, economists said.
A changing dynamic of modern warfare and its connection with the booming trade in bootleg markets was discussed at a global summit in Abu Dhabi, hosted by The Economist magazine.
The Changing Character of War Centre at the University of Oxford was established after 9/11 to gain a better understanding of the evolving dynamic of modern warfare and how it fits in with illicit trade markets.
“Cross-border tribes in this region have long smuggled contraband to pay for combat,” said Dr Annette Idler, the centre’s director of studies. “That is what is happening in Syria, Lebanon, Turkey and the rest of Europe and the world.
“We are now seeing this being reshaped by current trends. ISIS, for example, has grown to operate trans-nationally and has been using global illicit trade markets to fund and facilitate their operations.
“These criminals are now subcontracting computer hackers and rebels are working together with other militia and drug traffickers to fund their combat and facilitate regional instability.”
The Abu Dhabi event brought together delegates and experts from government, law-enforcement agencies and the private sector to address the root causes of illegal trade and ways to battle it.
It focused on new tech-nology, taxation, legal loopholes, free-trade zones, e-commerce and regional socio-economic instabilities that have presented new opportunities for counterfeiters, intellectual property crimes and other forms of illicit trade.
“Terrorist groups funding their actions through illicit trade is only one part of the bigger picture,” Dr Idler said. “There is a huge profit behind organised crime but it is more nuanced than that.
“Groups need to pay their soldiers and to buy their weapons. They are thriving in a war economy.
“In Colombia, the cocaine trade has helped fuel conflict, as has opium in Myanmar. Sierra Leone has endured years of conflict funded by the diamond trade.
“The lines between legitimate trade and the illicit markets are often blurred, and there is a Robin Hood image of some of these warlords operating in combat zones.”
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Read more:
WWF: Earth's wildlife plummeted 60 per cent over 40 years
Cheetah cub smugglers jailed for three years in raid on Gulf gateway
Dubai at heart of countering global animal trafficking, report finds
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Experts said illicit trade overlapped, with seizures by border controls uncovering a mixture of contraband that could include people, wildlife, drugs, alcohol, weapons and cigarettes. Wildlife is an increasing commodity in funding terrorist activity.
A decision by the Chinese government to lift a 25-year ban on the use of tiger bone and rhino horn in medicine was described as "worrying", said David Luna, a former US government specialist in terrorism and national security, and now president of Luna Global Networks.
“We’ve seen high-level royals and governments come out and talk about the importance of stopping animal trafficking and there has been an increase in international co-operation but there are challenges,” Mr Luna said.
“Just 10 years ago rhinos were being clipped at a rate of about 20 a year. That rose to 1,400 two years ago, it shows how profitable it has come.”
Multilateral trade institutions such as the World Trade Organisation are fighting back.
“Illicit trade is a global issue and its breadth and scale are growing,” said Raed Safadi, a chief economic adviser for the Dubai Government.
“Illicit networks exploit the technological, financial and communication innovations of globalisation. The starting point is to recognise that illicit trade is a trade barrier. We need a holistic approach, not a fragmented approach.”
Ruwais timeline
1971 Abu Dhabi National Oil Company established
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
Salah in numbers
€39 million: Liverpool agreed a fee, including add-ons, in the region of €39m (nearly Dh176m) to sign Salah from Roma last year. The exchange rate at the time meant that cost the Reds £34.3m - a bargain given his performances since.
13: The 25-year-old player was not a complete stranger to the Premier League when he arrived at Liverpool this summer. However, during his previous stint at Chelsea, he made just 13 Premier League appearances, seven of which were off the bench, and scored only twice.
57: It was in the 57th minute of his Liverpool bow when Salah opened his account for the Reds in the 3-3 draw with Watford back in August. The Egyptian prodded the ball over the line from close range after latching onto Roberto Firmino's attempted lob.
7: Salah's best scoring streak of the season occurred between an FA Cup tie against West Brom on January 27 and a Premier League win over Newcastle on March 3. He scored for seven games running in all competitions and struck twice against Tottenham.
3: This season Salah became the first player in Premier League history to win the player of the month award three times during a term. He was voted as the division's best player in November, February and March.
40: Salah joined Roger Hunt and Ian Rush as the only players in Liverpool's history to have scored 40 times in a single season when he headed home against Bournemouth at Anfield earlier this month.
30: The goal against Bournemouth ensured the Egyptian achieved another milestone in becoming the first African player to score 30 times across one Premier League campaign.
8: As well as his fine form in England, Salah has also scored eight times in the tournament phase of this season's Champions League. Only Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, with 15 to his credit, has found the net more often in the group stages and knockout rounds of Europe's premier club competition.
RESULT
Chelsea 2
Willian 13'
Ross Barkley 64'
Liverpool 0
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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Quick%20facts
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The specs: 2019 Jeep Wrangler
Price, base: Dh132,000
Engine: 3.6-litre V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 285hp @ 6,400rpm
Torque: 347Nm @ 4,100rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 9.6L to 10.3L / 100km
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THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Company%20profile
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THE BIG MATCH
Arsenal v Manchester City,
Sunday, Emirates Stadium, 6.30pm
MATCH INFO
Fixture: Thailand v UAE, Tuesday, 4pm (UAE)
TV: Abu Dhabi Sports
The years Ramadan fell in May
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MATCH INFO
Barcelona v Real Madrid, 11pm UAE
Match is on BeIN Sports
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Kat Wightman's tips on how to create zones in large spaces
- Area carpets or rugs are the easiest way to segregate spaces while also unifying them.
- Lighting can help define areas. Try pendant lighting over dining tables, and side and floor lamps in living areas.
- Keep the colour palette the same in a room, but combine different tones and textures in different zone. A common accent colour dotted throughout the space brings it together.
- Don’t be afraid to use furniture to break up the space. For example, if you have a sofa placed in the middle of the room, a console unit behind it will give good punctuation.
- Use a considered collection of prints and artworks that work together to form a cohesive journey.
