Ashgabat. January 29. INTERFAX - Issues of regional and international security were discussed during a videoconference by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov with the UN Deputy Secretary General, Head of the UN Counter-Terrorism Directorate Vladimir Voronkov, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan reported on Saturday.
Meredov confirmed Turkmenistan's commitment to participate in UN activities to strengthen the international system of countering terrorism, in consolidating international efforts to combat the terrorist threat, drug trafficking and human trafficking.
It is noted that during the conversation, special attention was paid to issues of regional and international security, in particular, strengthening cooperation within the framework of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy at the regional level, based on the provisions of the Ashgabat Declaration of 2011 and the Joint Action Plan to Counter Terrorism in Central Asia.
In this regard, they expressed readiness to adopt an updated Joint Action Plan on March 3-4, 2022 in Tashkent during an international conference dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the implementation of the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy in Central Asia.
The importance of regular meetings within the framework of multilateral platforms was also highlighted. In this context, Ashgabat proposed to intensify consultations with the UN Counter-Terrorism Office to consider possible formats and modalities of the Counter-Terrorism Office Program Office in Ashgabat.
Meredov expressed gratitude for the joint cooperation of the UN CTU and the Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy in the preparation and implementation of Turkmenistan's National Strategy for Preventing Violent Extremism and Countering Terrorism for 2021-2024, adopted in December 2020.
The sides also noted the importance of cooperation with the UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia. In this context, the important steps of the Government of Turkmenistan are emphasized. In particular, the Turkmen side has prepared a draft resolution of the UN General Assembly "Strengthening regional and international cooperation to ensure peace, stability and sustainable development in the Central Asian region", which will be submitted to the 76th session of the General Assembly.
The parties stressed that the adoption of this resolution will contribute to the practical implementation of international initiatives of Central Asian countries, including in the field of counterterrorism, reflected in the final document of the Consultative Meeting of the Heads of Central Asian States held on August 6, 2021 in Turkmenistan.
