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Turkey ready to cooperate with Russia on issues of drug trafficking, cybersecurity

During a visit to Turkey, Russian parliamentarian Vasily Piskarev met with a number of senior Turkish lawmakers

ANKARA, November 23. /TASS/. Turkey is ready to actively cooperate with Russia on issues of cybersecurity and drug grafficking, a senior Russian lawmaker, Vasily Piskarev, told reporters late on Thursday during his two-day visit to Ankara.

During the visit, the Russian parliamentarian met with a number of senior Turkish lawmakers.

"Turkish colleagues are interested in joining forces to keep drugs away from borders of our states. They are ready to render full support to us. We were glad to learn that our Turkish colleagues are ready to cooperate with us on this matter and on a number of other issues, because joint measures will help our people live in safety. Everyone is interested in boosting our inter-parliamentary ties in order to deal with the terrorist threat, drug trafficking and cybercrime. We found understanding and support on this matter, and we are ready to continue dialogue and exchange practical information," he said.

According to the Russian lawmaker, the inter-parliamentary cooperation on measures against drug trafficking was spurred by the launch of the so-called Moscow process of inter-parliamentary cooperation on solving the global problem of drug trafficking, launched during an international conference headlined ‘Parliamentarians against drugs’ and held with the support of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime in Moscow in December 2017.

Piskarev said his Turkish colleagues "demonstrated interest in exchange of practical information on cybersecurity, because nowadays internet can be a source of serious danger."

"It is often used to sell drugs, and the Turkish side is very concerned by the increased amount of synthetic drugs being sold. Internet is also used for involving young people into criminal schemes or for recruiting them to terrorist organizations," the member of the Russian parliament’s lower chamber, the State Duma, said.

"In this respect, the State Duma Committee on national security and fight against corruption invited Turkish colleagues to visit Russia and use the committee’s platform to hold an international conference on curbing the threat, which is now coming from cyberspace. The Turkish colleagues have elaborated a good legislative basis, and they expressed their readiness to share it. We also agreed to invite colleagues from Iran, China, and, possibly, from Afghanistan and Pakistan," Pisarev went on.

According to the parliamentarian, the conference was tentatively scheduled for the first half of 2019.

"Turkish colleagues requested time to systematize their practices, so that they could give us detailed information on how it works and affects the real situation," he said. "We, on our part, have done a lot to ensure the safety of the internet and we are ready to share our information.".