This was stated by the OSCE Co-ordinator of Activities to Address Transnational Threats, Alena Kupchyna, in her video message to the participants of the first meeting of the Central Asia Regional Expert Council on rehabilitation and reintegration of returnees from armed conflict zones, held in Tashkent.

Expressing gratitude to the government of Uzbekistan, the OSCE Co-ordinator of Activities to Address Transnational Threats noted that the initiative of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev to create a Regional Expert Council is a timely and essential step that facilitates the exchange of best practices between leading experts from Central Asian countries in rehabilitation and reintegration of returnees.

She said that the exemplary regional and international cooperation demonstrated at the event is a vital mechanism for aligning national efforts with international human rights-based practices.

Ambassador Alena Kupchyna informed about the development by the Transnational Threats Department and the OSCE Action against Terrorism Unit of a new initiative for prosecuting terrorist militants and rehabilitating and reintegrating their family members who were forced to follow them. At the same time, the intention was declared to use the many years of experience of Central Asian countries within the framework of this OSCE initiative.

G. Khonnazarov, UzA