Russian security chief urges allies to stop terrorists returning from Middle East
The head of Russia’s Security Council has told counterparts from the CSTO bloc that the issue of terrorists returning from Syria and other Middle East countries is of vital importance and asked them to focus on border control.
“We are especially concerned with the issue of fighters returning from areas of actual armed conflicts,” Nikolai Patrushev told a meeting of heads of security councils of CSTO nations.
“We consider it reasonable to actively hold operations to prevent recruitment of terrorists and to block all channels of their entry and exit from the territory of CSTO nations to take part in terrorist activities.”
CSTO, or Collective Security Treaty Organization is a Russian-led military bloc uniting ex-Soviet republics in Europe and Asia, such as Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan, with Serbia and Afghanistan participating as non-member observer states.
At the same event the Russian security chief called upon his colleagues to apply maximum effort to neutralize the channels through which terrorists receive funds and equipment, regularly hold joint anti-terrorist exercises and adopt a joint program on fighting the spreading of terrorist and extremist ideas among the younger generation.
He also said that CSTO member-states must speed up work on a joint database of terrorist groups and their members and start a program that would allow the joint establishment and banning of various extremist materials.
The fresh proposals are in line with plans first announced by Patrushev about a year ago. Back then he said that all nations of the BRICS bloc (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) should participate in an international database for countering terrorism – a project launched by the Federal Security Service in order to target terrorists and their sponsors.
In his statement, Patrushev also called upon foreign security officials to be more active in implementing the provisions of international agreements on fighting terrorism. These include UN Security Council resolutions concerning terrorists who return from hot spots to their native countries, and measures aimed at destroying channels of terrorism sponsorship.
Patrushev also revealed that, according to information received by Russian special services, Western nations had attempted to suppress the development of BRICS countries.
Like this story? Share it with a friend!
