KUWAIT, Nov 5 (KUNA) -- "Kuwait Declaration", issued at the end of the conference on "strengthening international counter-terrorism cooperation" on Tuesday, stressed the necessity of boosting collaboration on all levels to overcome border security challenges.
The participants of the High-Level Conference on "Strengthening International Counter-Terrorism Cooperation and Building Agile Border Security Mechanisms - The Kuwait Phase of the Dushanbe Process" Kuwait City, Kuwait, 4-5 November 2024, acknowledged the evolving global security landscape and the need to enhance and align collaborative efforts among the countries of our diverse regions and other international partners.
"We express our support for the relevant principles and actions outlined in the United Nations Pact for the Future (A/RES/79/1), as adopted by the General Assembly on 22 September 2024, which aims to protect the needs and interests of present and future generations, including addressing the drivers of terrorism, and we reaffirm to pursue a future free from terrorism," according to the declaration.
They underscored the critical role of multilateralism in addressing the global threat of terrorism and enhancing border security. No single country can address terrorism by itself. Multilateral cooperation enables coordinated and unified actions, ensuring that international, regional, and local stakeholders can share intelligence, best practices, expertise, and resources to effectively counter terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
They expressed support to the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact, a framework between the Secretary-General and the heads of the Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact entities.
They encourage UNOCT to ensure overall coordination and coherence in the counter-terrorism efforts of the United Nations system through the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact, particularly its Working Group on Border Management and Law Enforcement relating to Counter-Terrorism, with a view to maximizing synergies, achieving greater efficiencies, and avoiding duplication in their work, according to the statement.
They emphasized the need to enhance the effectiveness of United Nations counter-terrorism activities, underlining the importance of strengthening counter-terrorism efforts undertaken by United Nations entities, and encourage the UNOCT to continue its collaboration with Member States and those entities," it noted.
The conferees underscored the importance of strengthening international, regional, and national border security mechanisms to prevent the movement of terrorists, foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs), the and regional and sub-regional coordination They also underscored the need to prevent, combat, and eradicate the illicit use and trafficking of small arms and light weapons, conventional munitions, and chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear materials by terrorists, including their diversion to unauthorized recipients.
They further called for strengthening the implementation of the United Nations Countering Terrorist Travel Programme (CTTP). CTTP is led by UNOCT and implemented through a 'One-UN' approach together with the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the United Nations Office of Information and Communication Technology (OICT), the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), and the International Organization for Migration (IOM)," they pointed out.
The participants emphasized the critical role of the UNOCT-UNCCT Global Programme on Border Security and Management (BSM), which provides technical expertise to Member States and regional bodies in developing comprehensive border security strategies that integrate counter-terrorism measures and equip beneficiaries to tackle challenges and emerging threats at their borders.
The High-Level Conference on "Strengthening International Counter-Terrorism Cooperation and Building Agile Border Security Mechanisms - The Kuwait Phase of the Dushanbe Process", was held in Kuwait on 4-5 November under the patronage of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.
The Conference gathered more than 500 participants, including 28 Government Ministers and high-level representatives from 91 Member States, 14 international and regional organizations, 24 experts from civil society organizations, women and youth organizations, and think-tanks. (pickup previous) asm.hm