Tajikstan: SCO Members Pledge To Fight Against International Terrorism, Extremism & Separatism

Last year, Ajit Doval had stormed out of the SCO virtual meeting of national security advisors after Pakistan showed a "fictitious" map violating the agenda of the gathering.

New Delhi: During the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) meet in Dushanbe, Tajikstan the National Security Advisors of the member countries discussed cooperation against religious radicalism and the risks of increasing transnational organized crime, including arms and drug trafficking.

The members pledged cooperation in the joint fight against international terrorism, extremism & separatism. 

As per the details of the meeting, the members also stressed on the regional anti-terrorism structure of the SCO can play an important role in ensuring regional security and strengthening ties between member states in combating threats and challenges of the modern world.

The meeting also discussed cooperation between member states in ensuring reliable information security, the joint fight against cybercrime, and the issues of biological security and food security in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The meeting was addressed by President Emomali Rahmon.

Indian NSA Ajit Doval was also one of the participants of the meeting. Last year, Ajit Doval had stormed out of the SCO virtual meeting of national security advisors after Pakistan showed a "fictitious" map violating the agenda of the gathering. However, in recent months, Pakistani political and army leadership seems to have toned down rhetoric against India.

Pakistani NSA Moeed Yusuf also attended this meeting. He had earlier said that there is no possibility of a bilateral meeting with his Indian counterpart on the sidelines of the SCO meet.

Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa said in April that a stable relationship between India and Pakistan is key to unlocking the potential of South and Central Asia by ensuring connectivity. In February, India and Pakistan agreed to strictly observe the 2003 ceasefire agreement. 

The meeting was also attended by Asset Issekeshev of Kazakhstan, Marat Imankulov of the Kyrgyz Republic, Nikolai Patrushev of Russia, Nasrullo Mahmudzoda of Tajikistan, Bobur Usmanov of Uzbekistan and Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) Director Jumakhon Giyosov. 

According to Russian news agency TASS, the Russian Security Council said Patrushev and Doval discussed in detail “further plans of the Russia-India interaction in the security sphere, cooperation among the security and law-enforcement agencies”. The two NSAs had met on Tuesday and had exchanged opinions on the situation in Afghanistan and the Asia-Pacific region, it said.

(With agency inputs)