June 21, 2020
The Commonwealth of Independent States Anti-Terrorism Center (CIS ATC) is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its founding.
On 1 October 1999, the participants of the meeting of the Internal Affairs Ministers’ Council addressed the heads of states and heads of governments of the CIS member-states stating that the rise in terrorism, gangsterism, kidnapping, arms and ammunition trafficking, other serious crimes seriously undermines security of the CIS states. “Under these conditions it is necessary to offer a fitting rebuff to the international terrorism, armed separatism and other manifestations of extremism, consolidate the efforts of our states and first of all their law enforcement agencies,” the document highlighted.
On 21 June 2000, the Council of the Heads of the CIS member-states adopted a decision to found a CIS Anti-Terrorism Center which would act as a permanent specialized branch body of the Commonwealth providing coordination of co-operation of the security agencies and intelligence services in the field of combating international terrorism and other violent manifestations of extremism.
Since the early days of the CIS ATC’s activity efficient measures have been made to form a uniform legal and organizational space for combating terrorism, establishing solid contacts with the CIS institutions, regional and international structures which mandate covers countering a terrorist threat.
In his statement on the occasion of the anniversary the CIS ATC Head Colonel-General of Police Andrey Novikov stressed that the Center’s founding pushed forward a deep cooperation capacity consisting in development of the horizontal links of the special services, exchange of good practices, readiness to joint and coordinated operations.
“Over the last years the Commonwealth security agencies have managed to preserve and develop the level of trust and openness necessary for maintaining regional security, solving the problems of domestic stability of the CIS states. It is good that over these 20 years we could not just listen to each other and coordinate our stands but were able to create a stable multifactor model of protection of our Commonwealth against terrorist threats,” he noted.
Andrey Novikov said that the range of joint directions of anti-terror activities of the CIS member-states had been expanded as well as the efforts to counter terrorist ideology, terrorist use of unmanned vehicles, terrorist financing and material support of terrorist organizations with due regard for terrorist shift to a digital space had been stepped up in the last few years.
According to A. Novikov, it became possible much due to interested and active position of the members of the Council of the heads of security agencies of the CIS states which identifies the Center’s principal activity vectors.
The CIS ATC Head expressed most heartfelt thanks to the executives of the CIS national security agencies, CIS partners and international community for supporting the Center’s projects, willingness to elaborate and provide joint management, technological innovations in countering terrorism. “I believe that our close and constructive cooperation will further serve peaceful and progressive development of the CIS states, promote strengthening of friendship and trust between our peoples”, Andrey Novikov added.
