On March 29, the 41st meeting of the Council of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO RATS), chaired by the People’s Republic of China, was held in Tashkent.

Delegations of the competent authorities of India, Iran, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and representatives of the SCO RATS Executive Committee took part in it.

At the meeting, a statement was presented by the SCO RATS Council condemning the terrorist acts committed on January 3, 2024, in the city of Kerman in the Islamic Republic of Iran, on March 22, 2024, in Moscow region of the Russian Federation in the Crocus City Hall and on March 26, 2024 in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

On behalf of the SCO RATS Council, they expressed confidence in the speedy exposure of the organizers and perpetrators of the terrorist attacks, the inevitability of their punishment, as well as deep condolences to the families and friends of the victims and wished for a speedy recovery to the victims.

As noted, the competent authorities of the SCO member states will continue to strengthen practical cooperation and increase joint efforts to achieve victory over the forces of the “three evils”.

“In a short period, the Executive Committee of the SCO RATS has shown its effectiveness in resolving a set of issues and facilitating the coordination of interaction between the competent authorities of the SCO countries in the fight against the three forces of evil”, says the greeting of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, which was read by the First Deputy of the State Security Service of Uzbekistan Batyr Tursunov.

At the meeting, the Report of the SCO RATS Council to the Council of Heads of SCO Member States on the activities of the Organization in 2023 was agreed upon, and information on the progress in implementing the decisions of the SCO RATS Council was also reviewed. The parties gave a positive assessment of the activities of the SCO RATS Executive Committee over the past period.

The SCO RATS Council approved the work of the competent authorities of the SCO member states and the SCO RATS Executive Committee based on the results of implementing the Program of Cooperation of the SCO Member States in Countering Terrorism, Separatism and Extremism for 2022-2024 in 2023 and the decisions of the SCO RATS Council.

The meeting participants approved the draft Program of Cooperation of the SCO Member States in this direction for 2025-2027, as well as the results of the Joint Anti-Terrorist Exercise of the competent authorities of the SCO Member States “Eurasia – Anti-Terror – 2023” in Bishkek, identifying and intersecting the use of the Internet in terrorist, separatist and extremist purposes last year in New Delhi.

The proposal of the Kyrgyz side to conduct a joint operation of the border services of the competent authorities of the SCO member states “Solidarity – 2024” was supported, and several documents were approved to counter the forces of the “three evils”.

As part of the event, a decision was made to hold the 10th international scientific and practical conference on cooperation between SCO member states, and observer states under the SCO in countering global terrorism and extremism.

Several employees and officials of the SCO RATS Executive Committee were awarded for their contributions to developing the SCO RATS’s activities and strengthening interaction between the competent authorities of the SCO member states.

Decisions were made on organizational, personnel, and financial support for the SCO RATS Executive Committee’s activities.

An agreement was reached to hold the next meeting of the SCO RATS Council in the People’s Republic of China.

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Aziza Alimova, UzA