Program Global Shield
Overview
Cooperating with international partners is essential to protecting the global supply chain and the safety of American citizens. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is partnering with the World Customs Organization (WCO) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime to form Program Global Shield. This program aims to thwart the smuggling of precursor chemicals that could be used to build improvised explosive devices (IEDs), which are weapons commonly used against American troops and U.S. interests overseas.
In November 2010, Program Global Shield initially began as a pilot project with more than 70 participating nations that shared information about 14 precursor chemicals. Based on its initial success and importance to multiple countries, the WCO's 177 members voted to continue Program Global Shield as a long-term program in June 2011. This was the first time that the international community, as a whole, addressed the threat posed by these dangerous precursor chemicals. With real-time information and intelligence sharing, partners are now better equipped to identify whether or not shipments are legitimate.
The Counter-Proliferation Investigations Unit housed within Homeland Security Investigations' (HSI) National Security Investigations Division (NSID) oversees this ICE-led project. Along with the international partners, HSI has teamed with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Program Global Shield. HSI and CBP also work with other federal entities to effectively accomplish this mission.
Mission
Program Global Shield has three main goals that it seeks to accomplish:
- To identify and interdict falsely declared explosive precursor chemicals,
- To initiate investigations of smuggled or illegally diverted IED materials, and
- To uncover the smuggling and procurement networks that foster illicit trade.
Contact Information
To report suspicious activity, call 1-866-DHS-2-ICE (1-866-347-2423) or complete ICE HSI's tip form.
