UNODC and partners organized a three-day foundation course on investigations of the terrorism financing in Turkmenistan

“Turkmenistan successfully solves the security issues, in accordance with the  recommendations of Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) received by the government of the country on the implementation of measures aimed at strengthening the response of law enforcement agencies and other government structures related to countering the threats of terrorism and extremism. Thus, actively supporting the efforts of the world community in the fight against international terrorism, Turkmenistan has become a party to the relevant international conventions and protocols and is taking all necessary measures to implement the resolutions of the UN Security Council. These measures are set out in the national strategy of Turkmenistan on preventing violent extremism and countering terrorism for 2020-2024, as well as the National Action Plan for 2021-2024, aimed at implementing the above strategy. In this regard, I would like to thank our partners for the fruitful cooperation in the field of CFT, as well as in contributing to the implementation of the national policies and strategies in this area”,- emphasized Mr. Nurmammed Seyitliev, representative from the Ministry of Finance and Economy of Turkmenistan.  

The event aimed at supporting Turkmenistan in strengthening its countering the financing of terrorism (CFT) framework and the capacities of the national practitioners working in this field. Terrorist financing encompasses the means and methods used by terrorist organizations to finance their activities. This money can come from both legitimate and illicit sources. Therefore, CFT is a highly complex endeavor that involves many different actors.

The training course brought together over 16 representatives of the Financial Intelligence Service, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry of National Security, Ministry of Finance and Economy, and the Prosecutor General's Office of Turkmenistan.

The main goal of the training was to support enhancing the participants’ knowledge and professional skills to improve the efficiency of interagency cooperation in Turkmenistan in accordance with international best practices, as well as improve the country’s national capacity to counter the financing of terrorism and implement the recommendations of the Eurasian group on combating money laundering and financing of terrorism (EAG) mutual assessment for compliance with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards, in accordance with UN instruments and international norms.

Mr. Aliaksandr Vadziany, UNODC Regional Advisor on Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and countering the financing of terrorism, noted: “We have developed a unique course on the investigation of terrorist financing cases based on the needs of our national partners and this integrated approach shall be most effective in the current context. Of course, during the training we will not only  talk about the activities of the financial intelligence units, but also discuss proper interaction and joint activities between financial intelligence, law enforcement and judiciary agencies to counter financing of terrorism .”

“Countering the financing of terrorism is one of the key priorities for UNOCT, not only at the international but also at the regional and national level. We work on providing comprehensive and coordinated support together with our partners, to each country in Central Asia, including Turkmenistan, in this matter,” – said Ms. Karina Timsina, UNOCT Regional Coordination Officer.

At the end of the training course, the participants got acquainted with alternated theoretical presentations on such topics as the role of financial intelligence units and the importance of suspicious transaction reports, and practical exercises that proposed the realization of short financial investigations or the analysis of case studies that required active participation and the sharing of experiences and opinions of the representatives of the various state bodies, as well as working in groups. 

For further information please contact:

Arifa Fatikhova 

Communications and External Relations Officer

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) 

Regional Office for Central Asia

Mobile: (+998 93) 505-05-58 | Email: arifa.fatikhova[a]un.org