/ 1
TEHRAN (FNA)- Police departments of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) member states plan to establish a joint task force in the near future to fight narcotics in ECO region, a senior official of the regional body announced on Wednesday.
Addressing a meeting of the anti-drug agencies of the ECO member states here in Tehran today, Shamil Ali Askarov, the regional Secretary-General of the ECO, warned about the growing number of drug-related crimes in ECO members, and called for serious cooperation among the member states against this type of crime.
He announced that establishment of ECO Police is on the agenda of the organization in a bid to launch integrated and serious campaign against narcotics in the region.
Askarov added that introduction of a liaison officer by the member states will be the first effective step to be taken for setting up a police task force.
In June 2010, Iranian Interior Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar had urged members of the ECO to expand their security cooperation by forming a joint police force.
ECO is an intergovernmental regional organization established in 1985 by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey for the purpose of promoting economic, technical and cultural cooperation among the member states.
In 1992, the Organization was expanded to include seven new members, namely: the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Republic of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Republic of Uzbekistan.