The General Secretariat had analysed the international legal framework applicable to illicit trade across sectors and across crime areas, with the objective of demonstrating the interconnection between international conventions covering the curious aspects of illicit trade and encouraging countries to fully implement them within their national legal frameworks. The work was timely, since many countries werer reforming and strengthening their legal frameworks surrounding illicit rade. In relation to specific sectors. Such as tobacco and weapons, as well as their intellectual property legal frameworks to be able to deal with cases of copyright and patents infringements