Tajik President: Terrorist groups expand their extremist activities and use modern technologies

In a statement he delivered today at the international conference in Dushanbe, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon said that the redeployment of Middle East militants to other regions- Under the current conditions- bolsters the positions of terrorist organizations in Afghanistan and poses a serious threat to the Central Asian region.

“It was emphasized that over the last years, the range of threats and challenges arising from terrorism and extremism has steadily expanded.These destructive phenomena cause terrible consequences, and the activities of terrorist and extremist organizations and groups are becoming increasingly trans-boundary and transnational in nature,” he said.

Rahmon  went on to say: “Moreover, the rapid spread of the infectious disease COVID-19 over the past two years and its consequences have made the process of confronting these threats even more difficult and disrupted the process of implementing the 2030 Agenda and achieving its Sustainable Development Goals in various regions of the world.”

He asserted that terrorist groups are abusing such a situation, expanding their extremist activities, attracting more young people , encouraging and carrying out terrorist attacks, including using advanced information and communication technologies.

“Due to this situation, there is a need to develop new innovative approaches to the joint fight against terrorism, the spread of extremist ideology and religious extremism, including the use of modern technologies.” He added.

He concluded by saying: ” we hope that the countries of the world will unite in an effective resistance against these undesirable phenomena and in order to prevent the movement of terrorists, their transfer from one region to another, the understanding of the factors that provoke terrorism, as well as the development of a unified position on the concepts of extremism and terrorism.”

Compiled by: Basma Qaddour