Top official: Effective border protection a key measure in int'l security
By Aynur Jafarova
Effective protection of state borders under the conditions of the globalization process and integration of different countries into the international community is currently one of the key measures in ensuring international security, a senior Azerbaijani official has said.
"Protection of state borders is an effective tool against international terrorism, separatism, transboundary organized crime, illegal migration, smuggling of drugs and components of weapons of mass destruction," deputy head of the Presidential Administration, defense issues aide to the President, Lieutenant-General Vahid Aliyev said on September 9.
"All member states present at this meeting face these topical and in many cases tragic problems -- some of them to a lesser extent, some more, but absolutely all. Azerbaijan also faces a problem, which as we believe, is based on separatism, and we live with it right now," Aliyev said at the 70th meeting of the Commonwealth of Independent States Council of Border Troops' Commanders in Baku.
He said that today, when the world is becoming increasingly smaller and more transparent, "all of us understand that our borders start on our territories".
"People who protect our borders also protect your borders. Our right to a mistake increasingly reduces, and the responsibility grows," Aliyev said further. "International cross-border cooperation gains more significance against this background. Ensuring border security is also one of the priorities of the state security system and serves as a guarantor of stability in the region. Currently, the specificity and nature of threats on state borders as well as the tasks of border guards require new methods and attitudes in the sphere of ensuring border security between our states."
According to the senior official, currently Azerbaijan has a worthy place in the international community and the country's authority in the international arena increases year-on-year.
"Azerbaijan's achievements cover political, economic, geopolitical, energy, cultural and other spheres. As examples, one can cite the holding of the Eurovision international (song) contest, the World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue, the international humanitarian forum, the World Economic Forum (Davos Forum), 12th ECO summit -- all over the past year and a half. It should be mentioned that Azerbaijan, having been elected a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the first time in its history, began its activity in this organization from January 1, 2012. Azerbaijan was (also) represented at the event of G20 states in Mexico and at the Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul," he said.
As a result of a stable domestic policy, a high rate of economic development, successful social policy and the improving well-being of the population, Azerbaijan has turned into a favorable platform for holding various international events, which is evident in the holding of the meeting of the CIS Council of Border Troops' Commanders in Baku, Aliyev said.
"Azerbaijan's development as a democratic state, stabilization of the socio-political situation within the country, expansion of international cooperation, as well as ensuring the security of transport corridors and export pipelines, and exploitation of oil fields in the Caspian Sea, necessitated fundamental changes in border services, the logical conclusion of which is the creation of a separate State Border Service of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan's leadership fully supports the measures aimed at strengthening border security, systems of integration of border control and introduction of new norms and methods of border control. In the past ten years alone, the Head of State visited various units of the country's border service 19 times and became personally familiar with the situation in the area of state border security. The budget of border services has increased seven-fold since 2005," Aliyev said.
According to him, much work has been done to create modern border infrastructure, in particular, the logistics was improved and around 1,200 apartments, the Olympic Sports Center and a holiday center were commissioned.
"Coast Guard units were created at the Caspian Sea in 2005 in order to tighten control from air and ensure border security. Special attention is paid to the issues of improving qualifications of the personnel. Academy of State Border Service was established in accordance with the President's decree," Aliyev said.
The agenda of the Baku meeting of the CIS Council includes priorities of interaction of border services for providing security at the external borders of the CIS countries as well as in the Central Asia region and the Caspian Sea.
The meeting is focused on the proposals to the CIS leaders on the use of the services of border troops and other organizations for crisis resolution on the outside borders of the CIS countries, as well as providing emergency assistance to Dushanbe to strengthen border security on the Tajik-Afghan border.
The participants will summarize their activity for 2013 and evaluate the state of the implementation of the Council's objectives.
The meeting of the CIS Council is being held for the third time in Baku and attended by representatives from 10 countries - Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine as well as the Executive Committee and the Antiterrorism Center of the CIS and the Eurasia Economic Community.