Ulaanbaatar hosts conference on preventing and countering violent extremism and radicalization

AKIPRESS.COM - Efforts that promote tolerance, inclusion, inter-faith and inter-cultural understanding must be critical components of any strategy to prevent and counter violent extremism and radicalization that lead to terrorism (P/CVERLT), said speakers at the opening of a high-level inter-regional conference in Ulaanbaatar yesterday. The conference, which focuses on a ‘whole-of-society' approach to P/CVERLT, brought together some 150 policymakers, civil society and other relevant actors from across Asia and beyond in an inter-regional dialogue. An emphasis of the conference was the important role of youth in promoting peace and security, an imperative underscored by the recent OSCE Ministerial Council Declaration 3/18.
The conference is organized by the Government of Mongolia in collaboration with the OSCE Secretariat's Transnational Threats Department and the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT), with the aim of promoting the development and implementation of effective, human rights-compliant and gender-sensitive strategies and policies to P/CVERLT.
"Inclusiveness is crucial to the effective implementation of any effort in preventing and countering violent extremism and radicalization that lead to terrorism. This cannot be achieved by a single country. The threat is global and the response needs to be global. All States should be aware of an emerging tendency to target and drag nationals of smaller developing countries into drug-trafficking that leads to financing terrorism and money laundering," said Minister for Foreign Affairs of Mongolia Damdin Tsogtbaatar.
The conference contributes to Mongolia's efforts to promote social cohesion and intercultural, interfaith dialogue in the context of P/CVERLT in the Asian and Transatlantic regions. Over the course of the two-day event, participants will explore the role of youth and local communities, and exchange good practices and lessons learned during the implementation of relevant national action plans.
"Strengthening co-operative actions to prevent and counter violent extremism and radicalization that lead to terrorism creates grounds for more prosperity in all regions," said the Director of the General Intelligence Agency and National Counter-Terrorism Coordinative Council of Mongolia, Colonel Dorjpalam Gerel.
This is the fourth high-level P/CVERLT inter-regional conference with the participation of the OSCE's Asian Partners for Co-operation. It builds on the previous conferences that took place last year in Dushanbe, Seoul and Tashkent, which have explored trends, challenges and fresh approaches in P/CVERLT.
"We need to invest in prevention and in a whole-of-society approach that harness the efforts of different segments of all sectors of society. A society that embraces diversity and gives people a say is more resilient to violent extremism. We should see diversity as a strength rather than as a source of conflicts and work towards promoting inclusion rather than exclusion," said OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger.
The conference follows on from the first-ever High-Level Conference on Counter-Terrorism, held from 28 to 29 June 2018 in New York, which was convened by the UN Secretary-General to strengthen international co-operation to combat the evolving threat of terrorism. It is the second in a series of regional conferences that are taking place around the world to build to encourage governments to discuss and adopt a comprehensive and inclusive approach, involving all parts of society, when implementing national and regional plans of action to prevent and counter violent extremism.
"This Conference today is thus a critical follow-up to these discussions. Its outcomes will contribute to the second high-level conference that the United Nations is convening next year in New York. In a time when the value of multilateralism is being debated in some parts of the world, our coming together here today in Ulaanbaatar is a critical contribution to global efforts to address the scourge of terrorism," said the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Counter-Terrorism, Vladimir Voronkov, who was represented by Rafi Shah, Officer-in-Charge of Policy, Knowledge Management and Coordination Division of UN Office of Counter-Terrorism.
This was echoed by Milan Ciganik, representing the 2019 OSCE Chairmanship, who also stressed the need to understand and address root causes of violent extremism, including poor governance and social and political exclusion.