DUSHANBE, March 10, 2011, Asia-Plus — The Kyrgyz capital Bishkek is hosting a meeting of the council of national coordinators of counternarcotics agencies of the Central Asian countries, Russia and Azerbaijan today.
According to the Drug Control Agency (DCA) under the President of Tajikistan, the meeting participants are discussing an agreement on establishment of the Central Asian Regional Information and Coordination Center for Combating Illicit Trafficking of Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances and their Precursors (CARICC) and operational influence measures taken by the national coordinators to prevent drug trafficking.
The DCA first deputy director, Major-General Vaysiddin Azamatov, is presenting Tajikistan at the meeting, the source added.
The project to establish CARICC was launched by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) together with the parties to a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on sub-regional drug control cooperation Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan in late 2004. The purpose of the Center is to facilitate information exchange and analysis, and to assist in the coordination of operational activities of the various law enforcement agencies in the region – police, drug control agencies, customs, border guards, security services of the countries involved. Activities of the Center are supported by core staff (selected on a competitive basis from the law enforcement agencies of the participating countries) and by liaison officers from each of the participating states attached to it. Provision is also made for other interested countries and international organisations such as Interpol, Europol, and World Customs Organization to post liaison officers to CARICC to facilitate cooperation and information flow.
The Agreement on Establishment of CARICC entered into force on 22 March 2009 following its ratification by the parliaments of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. On December 9, 2009 the Office of CARICC was officially inaugurated in Almaty.
Afghanistan, Austria, Canada, Germany, Finland, France, Italy, Pakistan, Turkey, UK, the USA, Interpol and SECI Center, have observer status at CARICC.
The project on establishment of CARICC is implemented by the UNODC – its Regional Office for Central Asia (ROCA) with project staff based in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The donors of the project are Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Turkey, UK, and USA.
