Uzbekistan joins CIS agreement to combat illegal migration
By Aynur Jafarova
The upper house of Uzbekistan's parliament has passed a law on the country's accession to the agreement on cooperation of the Commonwealth of Independent States member states in combating illegal migration.
Members of the Senate backed the accession of Uzbekistan to the agreement with the condition that the country will not make changes to the domestic legislation.
Chairman of the Senate Foreign Policy Committee Sadiq Safayev, who presented the bill, said Uzbekistan's joining the agreement is necessary within the multilateral cooperation with the CIS countries, including in combating drug-related crimes, terrorism and other crimes, of which illegal migration is a source.
In accordance with the accepted procedures, the document will be submitted to the head of state for signing.
The law was approved by the lower house of the Uzbek parliament on January 31.
Nine CIS countries (except Georgia, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) signed the cooperation agreement in Moscow on March 6, 1998. The agreement envisions cooperation in combating illegal migration, including immigration control, exchange of information on illegal migration, etc.
The agreement also envisages measures to develop the methods of deportation of illegal migrants and cooperation in the development of skills. The adoption of this law will contribute to a more effective response to modern threats and challenges in the field of illegal migration.