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Tajik president calls for boosting potential of SCO’s anti-terrorist structure

Emomali Rahmon stated that it was necessary to step up the interaction of our countries’ law enforcement agencies and special services

DUSHANBE, September 17. / TASS /. Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rahmon has called for building up the potential of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s (SCO) counter-terrorist structure amid the ongoing developments in Afghanistan.

"We believe it is necessary to take concrete steps in order to counter the challenges and threats emanating from Afghanistan, in particular, by bolstering the capability of the SCO’s regional anti-terrorist structure and stepping up the interaction of our countries’ law enforcement agencies and special services," the Tajik leader stated on Friday at the SCO summit in Dushanbe.

The Taliban (banned in Russia) embarked on a large-scale operation to take control of Afghanistan after the US had announced its intention to withdraw its forces in the spring. On August 15, Taliban fighters swept into Kabul without encountering any resistance, with Afghanistan’s then President Ashraf Ghani subsequently fleeing the country. In early September, the Taliban seized control of the entire country, and promptly announced the new interim Afghan government, which included only members of the radical movement itself, the vast majority of whom are Pashtuns.