Parliamentary Conference on Combating International Terrorism is taking place in the Tavricheskiy Palace

IPA CIS Council Chairperson Valentina Matvienko opened the Parliamentary Conference on Combating International Conference in the Tavricheskiy Palace co-organized by the IPA CIS and OSCE PA.

The Conference debated the issue that is significant for all people around the globe, as the modern international terrorism is a serious challenge and a real threat to world civilization and culture, noted Valentina Matvienko.

The IPA CIS Chairperson stressed that today it was hardly possible to find a state that might consider itself fully immune to the danger of terrorism.

The international terrorism became largely possible due to a lack of unity among anti-terrorist forces and the wish of individual states to use terrorist armed forces in their geopolitical interests.

"There are no aims that could justify misanthropic ideology and killing of civilians, women and children.

"Countries offering terrorist shelters, facilities, financing and infrastructure shall not be supported by the civilized world and cannot be treated as respected members of the international community until these nefarious practices are prevented".

Speaking about the CIS record in fighting terrorism, she stressed that "in the recent years we have managed to build an efficient cooperation in this field. The CIS Anti-terrorist center made a significant input in these efforts". This means that states can reach agreement and work side by side to counter terrorism.

"Considering the spread of the simplified visa regime across the post-soviet space, special services, defense and law-enforcement agencies need better coordinate their work on preventing and countering the infiltration of warriors from Syria and the Middle East".

Valentina Matvienko mentioned the significant input of the IPA CIS in the security field through building a solid framework of model legislation regulating security matters.

The IPA CIS Chairperson also spoke about the need to exchange best related practices and the importance of efficient communication and sharing of information.

"Terrorism cannot be defeated once and for all without building a broad anti-terrorist coalition and concerted joint action of its members".

Yet, according to Valentina Matvienko, Russia's calls to join efforts against this common threat do not receive a proper response. If things will remain the same, ISIS and the like will perpetrate their crimes. MPs should enhance their efforts to give an impetus to the drafting of the UN Universal Convention against International Terrorism (ISIS is officially banned in Russia).

Inter-parliamentary anti-terrorist conferences could be a good tool in this regard and the OSCE PA anti-terrorist committee, in case it will be established, could organize and host such conferences.

"Terrorist must not have safe havens or take a foothold in the territories beyond the control of the international community. Building an efficient international legal framework on countering terrorism is one of the urgent objectives".

OSCE PA President Christine Muttonen noted that there is no simple solution to the problem of terrorism. "We need coordination and multi-lateral cooperation, prevention and defining of steps that could decrease the terrorist threat".

According to Christine Muttonen, we need to prevent recruitment of young terrorists and financing of terrorism. "To secure long-standing results, we need active steps including in preventing the root causes of terrorism". Political dialog and international inter-parliamentary cooperation is an important element of the common stand against terrorism.

The I plenary session of the conference included statements by Speaker of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kasym-Jimart Tokayev, PACE President Pedro Agrmunt, Speaker of the Jogorku Kenesh of the Kyrgyz Republic Chinybai Tursunbekov, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean Pedro Roque, Speaker of Majlisi milli Majlisi Oli of the Republic of Tajikistan Makhmadsaid Ubaidulloev, CIS Executive Secretary Sergey Lebedev, Chair of the Standing Commission of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus on National Security Valentin Mikhnevich. The Conference featured addresses by Director of the Office of OSCE Secretary General Paul Bekkers, Chair of the Committee of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Leonid Slutsky, Head of the CIS Anti-Terrorist Center Andrey Novikov.

The Conference also included plenary sessions II and III on the humanitarian and economic aspects of fighting terrorism.

The conference outcomes were set out in the Joint Conclusions of Co-Chairs of the Parliamentary Conference on Combating International Terrorism.