Economy interior ministers meet in Ashkhabad

High-level officials from security departments of the member countries convened in the Turkmen capital city to discuss the issues of the fight against terrorism, weapon smuggling, illicit drug trafficking, organized crime, corruption and illegal migration prior to the meeting.

 

Interior Minister Besir Atalay will attend the meeting on behalf of Turkey.

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The participants agreed to create an information bank to speed up the exchange of information among security departments of member countries. They also proposed to form a relief mechanism in case of natural disasters.

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A draft was written at the end of the convention and is expected to be ratified by the interior ministers at the meeting.

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The ECO is an intergovernmental regional organization established in 1985 by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey for the purpose of promoting economic, technical and cultural cooperation among member states. It provides a platform to discuss ways to improve development and promote trade, and investment opportunities.

 

The member states include Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The common objective is to establish a single market for goods and services. ECO's secretariat and cultural department are located in Tehran, its economic bureau is in Turkey and its scientific bureau is situated in Pakistan.