DUSHANBE, 17.11.2017. /NIAT «Khovar»/. The Fifth international scientific and practical conference of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (RATS SCO) entitled “Combating Terrorism — Cooperation without Borders” was held in the capital of Uzbekistan on November 2nd, 2017, featuring a wide geography of participants — 8 SCO member states (over 3,3 billion people, the territory is 34 million km², one-third of the world’s GDP, 4 countries have nuclear weapons), 4 SCO observer states and 13 international organizations, including five UN specialized counter-terrorism units.

The main topics of the reports of the speakers concerned the actual issues of countering modern challenges and threats emanating from international terrorist organizations, ways to strengthen cooperation in the interests of timely exchange of information, tracing terrorists, intensifying border control, countering the use of the internet for terrorist and extremist purposes and other important aspects of antiterrorist cooperation. The unacceptability of use of the principle of “double standards” in assessment of terrorist and extremist manifestations has especially been noted.

A great attention of participants was paid to the report of the head of the Executive Committee of the RATS SCO Sysoev E.S.. Characterizing the alarming tendencies of the aggravation of the terrorist situation and the measures taken by the Organization to counter terrorism, the Director of the Executive Committee stressed that a terrorist-extremist organization “Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan” (TEO “IRPT”) along with other international terrorist organizations poses a serious threat to regional security. Also, he has noted that “Joint measures taken by the RATS Council on the main areas of cooperation allow to conduct work on bringing to criminal responsibility and extradition of citizens who have been put on the international wanted list on suspicion of committing crimes of a terrorist and extremist nature.

Given the emerging operational situation, the main priority of the RATS is to counter foreign terrorist-fighters. To this end, there is being conducted a proper exchange of proactive information on the activities of the ITO “Islamic State”, “Jabhat al-Nusra” “Hizb-ut-Tahrir al Islami”, “Eastern Turkestan Islamic Movement”, “Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan” and others.

The topic of counteraction to the TEO “IRPT” has gained development in the report of the representative of Tajikistan, who raised the acute issue on the interest of the extra-regional forces in using the TEO “IRPT” in order to destabilize the situation and escalate extremism in the SCO’s ​​responsibility area, used by them the “double standards” in assessing terrorist activities of the “IRPT”.

In particular, the speakers noted that “given the geopolitical location of Tajikistan, which has simultaneous access to Afghanistan, the Ferghana Valley, and Chinese XUAR, the TEO “IRPT” was considered by foreign sponsors as the center for coordination of Islamic revolutionary activity in the region as a whole.

In September 2015, the TEO “IRPT” had implemented a large-scale terrorist act and an attempt of the armed seizure of power, which was suppressed as a result of a successful counter-terrorist operation of the competent bodies of Tajikistan.

During the investigation it was established that for the period of its activity in Tajikistan the heads of the TEO “IRPT” created 20 criminal groups for the implementation of criminal intentions, as well as in different years 500 young people were sent for training to foreign terrorist centers, the majority of which at present are active members of terrorist and extremist organizations in various regions of the world. Out of 1,000 citizens of Tajikistan, who are in the ranks of the armed units of the ITO “Islamic State”, 521 of them are members of the TEO “IRPT”. The attempts of a number of members of the TEO “IRPT” to go with their families to Syria for joining the fighters of ITO “Islamic State” have been foiled.

On September 29, 2015, by the decision of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Tajikistan the Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan is recognized as a terrorist-extremist organization, as well as its activities and print media are banned on the territory of Tajikistan. The basis of the court decision was based on the proven facts of the IRPT system organization of the terrorist underground and terrorist activities on the territory of the Republic of Tajikistan, close links with international terrorist structures such as the ITO “Islamic State”, “Ikhwan al-Muslimin”, “Jamaat Ansarullah”, “Hizb- ut-Tahrir al Islami”, “Taliban Movement”, “Eastern Turkestan Islamic Movement”.

In this regard, the TEO “IRPT” poses a serious threat to security and stability not only for the Republic of Tajikistan, but for all SCO member states”.

The same position of the RATS SCO in relation to the TEO “IRPT” had been voiced at the high level not only at the previous conference, but also earlier during the XVI Meeting of heads of special services, security agencies, and law enforcement agencies-partners of the FSB of Russia (October 4th, 2017, Krasnodar), CSTO International Conference “Transnational challenges and threats related to terrorist activity. The realization of the potential of international organizations in the field of countering terrorism” (June 16th, 2017, Moscow), the Interpol Conference “Presentation of operational counter-terrorism mechanisms” (July 11th and 12th, 2017, Tehran) and etc.

It is noteworthy that the mentioned principled assessment of the terrorist activities of the “IRPT” was expressed by the Deputy Director of the Executive Committee of the RATS SCO in a report given at the Meeting of the working group of the KALKAN project, which took place in Tehran and was organized by Interpol jointly with the Ministry of the Internal Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran. But, as it was mentioned, namely the political regime of Iran is among the entities providing support to the TEO “IRPT”, although at this the Islamic Republic of Iran aspires to obtain the status of the SCO member state. Perhaps, the emphasis in the speech of the leadership of the RATS Executive Committee about the danger of the consequences of the terrorist activities of the “IRPT” for regional security serves as a kind of a message to Iran to stop lobbying this TEO. Moreover, such a policy of supporting terrorists grossly violates the principles of the Charter and other statutory documents of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

All above-mentioned convinces that through the RATS SCO systemic measures are being taken to curb the criminal activity of the TEO “IRPT”. As the experts note, “at a meeting of the highest statutory body of the RATS, which was held in Beijing on September of this year, the issue of the TEO “IRPT” was the theme of special consideration of the leaders of the anti-terrorist structures of the SCO member states. The basis for this was the inclusion of the TEO “IRPT” under No. 79 in the List of terrorist, separatist and extremist organizations, whose activities are banned on the territories of the SCO member states, and its leaders and functionaries in the Single search register of persons, declared by special services and law enforcement agencies of the SCO member states on the international wanted list for committing or suspected of committing crimes of a terrorist, separatist or extremist nature….

Along with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the TEO “IRPT” is also in the focus of attention and response of such authoritative international organizations as Interpol, the CIS Antiterrorist Center, and the CSTO. The members of the TEO “IRPT”, included in special accounts of these anti-terrorist structures, are subject to detention, arrest, and prosecution for terrorist crimes committed by them. A number of functionaries of the TEO “IRPT” were already detained in various parts of the world, where they tried to escape from justice and continue to prepare terrorist acts and recruit new recruits.

In this context, it is represented that the consolidation of the efforts of the international community will be the main factor in disrupting the destructive plans of the TEO “IRPT” to sow the seeds of terror and violence on the SCO space. Consequently, the attempts of a number of Western countries once again to apply the “double standards” and openly flouting the norms of international law, to provide terrorists of the “IRPT” a shelter to continue their criminal activities are doomed to failure.

Karim VOHIDOV