DUSHANBE, April 2, 2012, Asia-Plus — Ms. Bunafsha Odinayeva, deputy director of the Drug Control Agency (DCA) under the President of Tajikistan, represented Tajikistan at the third meeting of counternarcotics agency officials from member nations of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) that took place in Beijing, China on April 2, the DCA press center reports.
The counternarcotics officials from Tajikistan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Russia and Uzbekistan reportedly attended the meeting, presided over by China’s Deputy Minister of Public Security Zhang Xinfeng. The meeting participants reportedly considered issues related to expansion of cooperation in combating drug crime and strengthen precursor chemicals management.
As an active member nation of the SCO, Tajikistan is taking systematic measures to strengthen fight against drug trafficking and drug addiction, the DCA press center noted.
Meanwhile, China’s newspaper
Inside China
notes that the meeting participants also discussed international and regional drug situation to further improve the three anti-drug mechanisms as well as strengthen the pragmatic cooperation between the SCO member nations in the field of drug control for implementation of the SCO anti-drug strategy 2011-2016 and its plan of action.
The meeting participants noted that the drug problem in Afghanistan is increasingly serious and it may affect the region’s security, stability and socioeconomic development,
Inside China
reports.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is an intergovernmental mutual-security organization which was founded in 2001 by the leaders of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Except for Uzbekistan, the other countries had been members of the Shanghai Five, founded in 1996; after the inclusion of Uzbekistan in 2001, the members renamed the organization.
The SCO is primarily centered on its member nations’ Central Asian security-related concerns, often describing the main threats it confronts as being terrorism, separatism and extremism. However evidence is growing that its activities in the area of social development of its member states is increasing fast.
