Kyrgyz Interior Ministry, UNODC Central Asia discuss prospects for further cooperation

Bishkek, April 21, 2021 . / Kabar / . The Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek hosted on Wednesday a working meeting of the leadership of Kyrgyzstan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and a delegation of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Central Asia, the press service of the Interior Ministry said. The event was attended by Deputy Interior Minister of Kyrgyzstan Nurbek Abdiyev, Head of the Counter Narcotics Service of the Kyrgyz Interior Ministry Ulanbek Sultanov, UNODC Regional Representative to Central Asia Ashita Mittal, Head of UNODC Programme Office in Kyrgyzstan Andrey Seleznev, Adviser on Combating Human Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling Reda Sirgedien, UNODC International Manager in Central Asia Koen Marquering. Welcoming the delegation, the deputy minister once again noted the high importance that UNODC attaches to the fight against crime in Kyrgyzstan. “We highly appreciate the UNODC's contribution to the fight against criminality in Kyrgyzstan, especially in the area of combating drug trafficking, human trafficking and crime prevention," Nurbek Abdiyev said. Ashita Mittal congratulated the deputy minister on appointment and wished him success. "I would like to note that we consider the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic the most important partner in the fight against crime, close work has been established with the Counter Narcotics Service of the ministry. In addition, Kyrgyzstan has participated in a number of initiatives that have become an example for other countries. UNODC highly appreciates the initiative and efforts of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kyrgyzstan in modernization," the UNODC representative said. During the meeting, the sides discussed the further development of cooperation, which is currently an effective mechanism for coordinating the efforts of competent authorities in the fight against transnational drug-related crime, extremism and human trafficking.