 Prime Minister and Minister for National Security, Honourable Philip J. Pierre, continues to facilitate the allocation and supply of critical crime-fighting resources to the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force. Prime Minister Pierre has secured special operational equipment and more than $400,000 from the Republic of China on Taiwan to equip the Forensic Services Unit with cutting-edge firearms examinations and analysis capabilities. It is my administration have consistently explored the feasible ways to address the public security issue. In his state visit in November last year, Admiral Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre had a comprehensive conversation with Taiwan's National Police Agency regarding police cooperation. Expanding the Forensic Lab's firearms analysis capabilities, further strengthens the hand of the police force. Police investigators can integrate the enhanced forensic technology to more accurately piece together firearm-related crimes. We as a government have concentrated our efforts on crime abatement more than any other government in the history of this country and I'm proud of it and it will continue. I want to send the government of Taiwan for the continuous support to the government of Saint Lucia in our efforts on bad crime. The Forensic Services Unit will have the capacity to conduct DNA analysis on firearms, restore serial numbers to trace guns, and potentially identify users of a gun, and link firearms with crime scenes or perpetrators. The unit will also be capable of linking crime scenes in the absence of having a physical weapon for comparison. Let me encourage officers to continue working hard to make Saint Lucia a better place, especially as relates to the funding to assist us in forensic labs, to assist us in tracing firearms. It is very vital at this time, very often criminals think that they can commit crime with impunity and escape with this, but today we are letting you know that we are determined to put whatever we are going to receive today into use and to hold you accountable for your actions. The Forensic Services Unit is attached to Saint Lucia's Forensic Science Laboratory, officially recognized as a center of excellence for regional forensics and currently the only forensic lab in the eastern Caribbean region with A2LA accreditation. Office of the Prime Minister