Association for Defending Victims of Terrorism – According the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Office website, the International High-Level Conference on “International and Regional Border Security and Management Cooperation to Counter Terrorism and Prevent the Movement of Terrorists” took place in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
In this conference, high-level officials, including the President of Tajikistan, Mr. Emomali Rahmon, the Secretary General of the United Nations, Mr. Antonio Guterres, Mr. Vladimir Voronkov, the Director of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Office, and a number of government ministers and other senior officials from the region and abroad participated.
The conference started with the video message of Antonio Guterres, the Secretary General of the United Nations. In his words, he said, “The United Nations was established for the purpose of promoting tolerance and living in peace with each other as neighbors, according to what is stated in the charter. Transnational threats such as terrorism inherently require joint and multilateral solutions. And we need to jointly take a deeper look to identify and manage the root causes and sufferings that provide the basis for radicalization. Let us together promote peace, sustainable development, and human rights in Central Asia and beyond.
In this conference, Mr. Vladimir Voronkov, the director of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Office, stated that the active participation of stakeholders shows the importance of our conference, which deals with the issue of international, and regional security cooperation and border management to fight terrorism and prevent the movement of terrorists. Holding this conference is proof of the need for multilateral cooperation in our collective fight against terrorism. Border security and cooperation is an important part of the legal framework in the international fight against terrorism. We have no choice but to strengthen the joint effort to prevent and counter terrorism. This is a complicated issue, but if we work together, we can succeed.
The director of the United Nations counter-terrorism office further stated that the results of this conference are relevant to all member countries around the world. We have made progress in the fight against terrorism in Central Asia, but we need more regional and national capacities to prevent the movement of terrorists across borders. It is true that technological advances have helped us in the fight against terrorism, but the key to successful and effective border security is cooperation at all levels.
In the end, he said that terrorism is still one of the most serious threats to international peace and security. I urge member states to continue working together and address the challenges posed by terrorism through the United Nations. My office is fully committed to working with all member states and stakeholders who are here today.
In this conference, Mrs. Oguljeren Niyazberdiyeva, Chief of Office of the Under-Secretary-General, United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism, stated that we are waiting to discuss opportunities to deepen our cooperation to prevent and fight terrorism in this region.
Emomali Rahmon, the president of Tajikistan, also stated in this meeting that extremism and terrorism have nothing to do with the nation, religion, and nationality. Therefore, the right way to effectively fight this phenomenon is the sincere cooperation of countries, regional and international organizations, and the world community.
