NUR-SULTAN – The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) should develop a coordinated mechanism to combat transnational crime, said Kazakh Internal Affairs Minister Marat Akhmetzhanov at the fourth meeting of SCO member states’ Ministers of Internal Affairs and Public Security on Aug. 18 in Tashkent, reported the ministry’s press service.
Kazakh Internal Affairs Minister Marat Akhmetzhanov. Photo credit: Kazakh Internal Affairs Ministry
According to the minister, Kazakhstan has ratified all 19 international anti-terrorism treaties and protocols. In the context of global and bilateral cooperation, the country signed more than 90 anti-crime agreements. As a result, competent authorities uncover civilians in combat zones (in 2019 and 2021, 700 Kazakhs were returned from Syria and Iraq).
As for the fight against drug crime, Akhmetzhanov reported on the measures taken as part of the SCO Anti-Drug Strategy. During an investigation over the last year and a half, 40 drug laboratories for the unlawful creation of synthetic drugs were discovered.
The meeting participants welcomed Kazakh officials’ measures to combat transnational organized crime, drug trafficking and cybercrime. Akhmetzhanov also discussed Kazakhstan’s expertise in combating human trafficking.
During the meeting, SCO member countries discussed their experiences in dealing with current challenges and threats, including extremism and human and illegal arms trafficking.
