TASHKENT (Dispatches) – International terrorist groups have stepped up activities in Afghanistan and Syria and are attempting to establish sleeper cells in Central Asia, the executive director of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s (SCO) Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) said on Saturday.
Olarbek Sharshiyev made the remarks during the 11th International Conference of the SCO RATS, held in Tashkent on November 20–21. Representatives from the United Nations, the OSCE, INTERPOL, the CIS Anti-Terrorism Centre, and the Collective Security Treaty Organization attended.
Sharshiyev warned that terrorist organizations continue to seek ways to deploy militants to Central Asian countries using forged documents via third countries. He said these groups aim to carry out attacks, set up sleeper cells, raise funds, and recruit new members to expand their networks.
“The leaders of global terrorist networks have not abandoned their plans to establish operational structures in the region,” Sharshiyev said, highlighting the continuing threat to SCO member states.
Yevgeny Sysoyev, head of the CIS Anti-Terrorism Centre, said groups based in the Middle East were increasingly moving fighters into Afghanistan to extend their regional influence. He noted “aggressive recruitment efforts” targeting Central Asian migrants and a rise in online propaganda in Tajik, Kyrgyz, Uzbek, and, for the first time, Kazakh languages.
Participants at the conference discussed strategies to prevent citizens from joining radical networks and addressed emerging cyber-security threats. Sharshiyev said the establishment of a Global Centre in Tashkent would provide a practical mechanism to coordinate regional counter-terrorism responses and tackle growing security challenges facing SCO member states.
Delegates stressed cooperation and information sharing among SCO countries as critical to countering the increasing mobility of militants and the spread of extremist propaganda in the region.
The SCO, which includes China, Russia, India, Pakistan, and Central Asian states, has increasingly focused on regional security and anti-terrorism coordination as threats from militant groups continue to evolve across Afghanistan and its neighboring countries.