Pakistan hosts its first SCO anti-terrorism meeting in Islamabad

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is hosting a three-day Shanghai Cooperation Organisation-Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (SCO-RATS) meeting in Islamabad from today – its first ever since the country became a member of SCO in June last year.

Legal experts from the eight member states, including India, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Pakistan, as well as representatives of the SCO and RATS Executive Committee are participating in the meeting.

The moot is being held to discuss terrorist threats facing the region and ways and means to enhance counter-terrorism cooperation between SCO member states.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua shared Pakistan’s experiences in tackling the menace of terrorism. She pointed out that Pakistan has incurred losses worth billions in the war against terrorism, and that it is ready to cooperate with the SCO member states in combating this threat.

In a statement earlier, the Foreign Office said Pakistan supports SCO’s efforts for regional cooperation in fighting terrorism, drug trafficking and organised crimes.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation which was founded on June 15, 2001 in Shanghai, China. 

Its main goals include strengthening mutual trust and neighbourliness among the member states; promoting effective cooperation in politics, trade, economy, research, technology and culture, as well as in education, energy, transport, tourism, environmental protection; making joint efforts to maintain and ensure peace, security and stability in the region; and moving towards the establishment of a democratic, fair and rational new international political and economic order.