Thank you, and please allow me to show the Service my appreciation for this important "meeting - debate". I believe that the participation of many different voices in such an important Seminar allows every one of us to widen our knowledge and to reflect on these important issues. Prof. Gobbo has just said that the analysis of the phenomenon by different observers is useful, without a doubt, to integrate our knowledge in order to devise contrasting strategies.
As it is often the case, observers do not speak, do not interact and do not welcome the exchange of knowledge, of experiences that could instead be very useful for others within their specific fields of activities.
I deem this opening statement very significant as my own professional background was consolidated through operative experiences of national co-ordination, presently international, which have enabled me to explore various areas and therefore see the need for up-to-date projects and specific initiatives in the most sensitive security sectors.
We are all aware of the scope of criminal phenomena, of the interaction between the main illegal profiles and criminal organisations in different areas of our national territory, of Europe and even beyond. Everyone knows that criminal groups' interests go beyond regional borders, towards wider contexts. This evolution of the phenomena and of criminal enterprises' interests should be looked at in the light of the geo-political changes which have taken place in recent years in central Europe. In particular we should look at the current migration flows often governed by integrated criminal systems.
We must also consider those illegal sectors which physiologically, I would say, involve an international operational extension. It is clear the reference to drug-trafficking as a multi-faceted and international phenomenon: multi-faceted because of its various phases from producing to manufacturing and storing the finished product; international because of the various segments of organised crime involved.
These two profiles of the illegal activity have allowed the unification of the various rings in the chain of trafficking and the various rings of the criminal organisations, creating therefore a spiral linking drugs and organised crime with explosive effects.
This reality, which I think needs to be studied more deeply, accurately, and precisely through integrated analysis, well measured and careful work-plans, is in full evolution and has lately attracted the European Community's attention. In the wake of the birth of Europol, the operative picture of the European Anti-Drug Unit ahs already been modified; widening its responsibilities adding three more field of activity. If we look at this development we can figure out the new criminal identity and the related phenomena.
The new sectors of activity are: clandestine immigration, trafficking in nuclear and radioactive material, white women trade, and also car-thefts should be added as the National European Anti-Drug Unit' responsibilities are ever increasing so as to allow Europol to be rapidly operative in the Euopean context.
When facing such wide developments of the organisations and thier illegal system it is clear that our answer must be up to it, must go beyond national boundaries and must interact perfectly with other countries' response.
We all know that the first fundamental step towards cohesion of the various national realities is the participation to the INTERPOL project, already consolidated: but, there are now new targets and new objectives to achieve.
Undoubtedly we consider the contrasting moment as very important, stressing and separating the various moments into three distinct phases: a first phase which is , and I repeat, consolidated of INTERPOL and by a careful participation in the progress which can be made in certain international sites, as in the European Council and in the UN. A second phase, just as important to evaluate, is the one regarding unilateral and multilateral agreements. Some time ago I was speaking to the National Anti-Mafia Prosecutor about the project which stemmed from the agreement Italy-USA, that is the Italy-USA Committee. A committee which up-dates its work-plans, confronts and establishes new platforms for co-ordinated interventions.
Recently, we have had a change in this committee with a renewed interest in certain themes such as the collaborators with justice (supergrasses), terrorism, measures on personal property, seizure and confiscation of goods of the organisations, the exchange of information and of know how between the various realities in the two countries, which interact and then also about extradition. These are three fields of action for which a very important and intense activity of co-operation must undoubtedly be developed during the following months.
Other committees are born in the shadow of bilateral agreements and, in these committees, just like in the Italy-USA one for example, elements from SISDe, therefore of the domestic Intelligence, are present.
As far as the third stage is concerned, we must refer to the compensative measures provided for in the Schengen agreement, and in the Maastricht Treaty. Undoubtedly, article K19 of the treaty is very important. Here there is an explicit reference to co-operation at an inter-governmental level, to police co-operation in prevention in the fight against terrorism, to illegal drug-trafficking, and to other serious forms of international crime, included, if necessary, some aspects of customs co-operation connected to the organisation at the Union level of a system of exchange of information within a European office of Europol police.
I wish to end this speech by underlining that following the title VI of the Maastricht Treaty intense forms of co-operation are being established. Up to today, the theme of money-laundering has been closely examined, both in qualification seminars, and through meetings of experts. In the near future, at the European Anti-Drug Unit a debate will take place on the basis of the knowledge of legislative realities because without harmonising legislations it is useless to build a co-operation and even exchange information. In the next few days we will already have the new commitment of Europol which has expanded to those three areas which I mentioned before.
Then we must consider the scope and the interest for the system Teledrug. During this period, this system of communication has drawn the attention of the United States, Germany, and other countries which residually remained within the area of Eastern Europe, I am referring to Estonia, the last one which adhered, bilaterally, to this particular system.
We are faced with bilateral understandings, but with a constellation which must naturally be used both on the European Union context but also with bilateral understandings with other countries like the United States. Then, we must consider the new front of co-operation which has opened in the Mediterranean area. The Union is particularly interested, through the so called "partnership" in establishing agreements and close relationships with these countries. Italy is also interested in these countries if we consider the flow of clandestine immigration which leaves from the shores of the Mediterranean basin, from the African countries, and even from the countries of Eastern Europe.
We must also consider a trans-Atlantic dialogue that the same European Union has opened with the United States and other countries. Therefore facing this situation, it is clear that we are now in a new interesting way, facing a new reality, a new way of behaving, and I believe, that the glue and the common denominator is, without doubt, the exchange of information - an essential prerequisite.
The national legislator foresaw in the 1991 law this particular aspect to be fulfilled by the Intelligence Services. In the text, it is stated that for the domestic and external domains, it is responsibility of said Services to perform intelligence and security activities against any danger or form of subversion by organised criminal groups threatening the institutions and the development of society. Said legal provsion represents a signficant step as far as the strengthening of the available intelligence resources in the sector of the fight against crime is concerned, so as to favour investigations carried out by the judicial authorities.
I would like to state in advance that the understanding of criminal phenomena and the availability of adequate legislative instruments are the prerequisites for an effective contrasting action against organised crime. I feel it is useful, in this second part to examine some aspects of the complex subject from my present observation post which is that of Director of the International Relations Service of the Department of State Police.
We have just heard a qualified intelligence operator speaking about organised crime and without a doubt we find ourselves facing a new way of interpreting this concept. Starting from the need to delve deeply into the position of single individuals before delving into the facts, it is necessary to take into consideration that this particular approach is spreading very slowly in many countries.
Within the Community we are working so as to strengthen this concept of organised crime.
The draft convention, which at present is being examined by the experts, defines in art.2 the areas which Europol will have to deal with. In article 2 the objective is clearly defined: facts, phenomena, illegal activities which can be placed within the context of criminal organisations.
This issue is gaining more and more space within the Community, especially if we consider that next May, the "Group on Drugs and Organised Crime" - one of the working-groups created within the third pillar of the Treaty, and in particular in Director Group 2, that is where the problems of Police co-operation are faced - will have to present a report on organised crime in every member State.

This time the report will have to be extremely concrete. In the past, the reports were very general and from them one could not draw any input for real approaches. This time, instead, the report will have to be based on the knowledge of criminal organisations operating in each country. It must contain a reference to the illegal activities carried out by the individual groups, to the connections between individuals and criminal associations creating a space for timely and expanded knowledge able to aid Europol in carrying out that intelligence activity particularly rewarding and significant.
As I said before, we must consider that at this particular moment of co-operation, Intelligence Services, in particular SISDe for Italy, are taking part in the project .
It has been repeatedly said that the criminal productive cycle ends up with money-laundering, that is inserting the profits into safe circuits.
I would also like to underline how important it is to have complete data banks so that the investigator and the magistrate can operate effectively against criminal organisations.
Today, we have serious difficulties in coordinating the various bodies tasked with fighting drug-trafficking and money-laundering and, further some countries have not ratified yet some important agreements (in particular the Strasbourg agreement of 1990). Some countries have not yet absorbed into their national legislations the principles of the Community directive of 1991. Undoubtedly, we are deeply feeling the need for harmonising legislations in order to allow oeprators to act quickly and effectively.
Co-operation is important also with reference to money-laundering, but it is often done in very simple terms. There is a bilateral agreement Italy-United Kingdom which is quite special because it allows both countries to hold the profits which the criminal organisations have placed in either of the two countries. We will talk about this with the Americans during our next meeting because it will be very interesting to assess the results of enquries which are first of all intelligence oreintated and later become investigative and judicial and whose aim is to hit and get hold of all the assets, fruit of illegal activities.
In the bilateral agreement Italy-United Kingdom for example there is a provision by which the required country is in effect able to make use of these assets. There are always arbitration clauses, so that it is always possible to establish alternative solutions. The fundamental problem is locating, seizing and confiscating the assets.
It is clear that in this respect the handling of the information is crucial. During the Seminar held from the 30th of January to the 10th of February last year, experts of 15 countries of the Community concluded that the main problem, the final objective, is to hit the final stage of the criminal productive cycle.
We are facing difficulties linked on the one hand with the different legislations and on the other with the exchange of information and with the inability by many countries to explore the intelligence data banks, archives, registers and so on, a fact that - I must tell the truth - in our country has its own value, and its own significance. If we consider the Italian Exchange Office, for example, it has already registered over 23.000 financial intermediaries, if we only consider the real-estate sector we realise the importance of this information together with that produced by the Services, thanks to confidential sources, and through intelligence activities. It is therefore clear that it is necessary to support this construction effort through the usage and the correct handling of the information produced by all these circuits.
I would like to conclude underlining how important is the handling of information for the preventive action with respect to the roles to the Services, the Police Forces, and to the judicial authorities.
But, it is clear that it must be a construction which allows everyone to get to know, to integrate others' knowledge, to support the judicial activity.
The investigations can be developed even with the collaborators of justice (supergrasses), with the reporting of a crime, but it must be perfected through this choral action beginning with the Services and developed through the intelligence activity, and here I would like to mention again the fundamental role which Europol will have to play in the intelligence phase, and the analysis phase.
As a matter of fact, next to the so called liaison officers - the representatives of the National Criminal Intelligence Unit - there will be the analysts to support to the investigative moment that each liaison officer proposes. I spoke about liaison officers: I do not mean only those present within Europol, but also those present within the police forces, because they are the links in a network which has to contribute to the intelligence wealth in relation to trans-national crime, in relation to the criminal phenomena, to the interactions and to the integration of the multifaceted criminal systems.
It is therefore necessary that these liaison officers go beyond stereotyped schemes. Their ways and approaches to the widening of knowledge and to the favouring of investigative projects must be at all time up to date.