Protection of soft targets from terrorist attacks: government officials from Tajikistan conclude OSCE-led study visit to France

The OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe, the OSCE Transnational Threats Department, and the Permanent Representation of France to the OSCE organized a study visit to Paris for government officials from Tajikistan, familiarizing them with France’s approach to the protection of soft targets from terrorist attacks.

During the study visit, held from 20 to 22 November 2023, officials from Tajikistan met with representatives of the city of Paris and the national Government. They discussed the design of emergency plans in public spaces, including schools, hospitals, religious sites and shopping centres. They also discussed threat analysis procedures, the evolution of legislative frameworks on terrorism prevention, human rights-compliant approaches to the protection of public spaces and public engagement.

“France's experience in the fight against terrorism in general, and in particular on protecting vulnerable targets in a terrorism context can be very beneficial for further enhancing our national efforts in this area. It was a fruitful and informative study visit,” said Zafar Safaralizoda, Deputy Head of the Directorate on Human Rights Guarantees under the Presidential Office and Head of the delegation of Tajikistan on this study visit.

“For many years, our country has been a target for ISIS and Al Qaeda-inspired groups and their supporters. Attacks on vulnerable targets are a modus operandi that we must anticipate and be able to respond to. The terrorist attacks that have plunged French society into mourning in recent years, particularly those in Paris in January and November 2015, illustrate the crucial challenge of ensuring the safety of the French people while preserving our way of life, values and commitment to freedom. This study visit, initiated by the OSCE, enabled the delegation of Tajikistan on this study visit to meet the various players responsible for facing this challenge and contributed to our desire to strengthen the co-operation and exchanges of best practices with countries facing similar threats,” said General Christophe Perret, Head of the French Ministry of the Interior International Affairs Sub-directorate (SDAI), who co-ordinated the study tour.

“One of the OSCE’s greatest strengths is the expertise and experience of its participating States and their willingness to share with one another. We thank the Government of France for welcoming the delegation of Tajikistan in their country and making available the expertise necessary to truly grasp how schools, public spaces, houses of worship and other soft targets are protected from terrorist attacks,” said Jukka Tuononen, Head of the Politico-Military Department and Officer-in-Charge of the OSCE Programme in Dushanbe.

The study visit will serve as a basis for further OSCE capacity-building and technical support to Tajikistan on soft targets protection, with a focus on preventing terrorist threats while upholding respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. The study visit takes place alongside recent OSCE and partner activities in the field of soft targets protection, including the 2023 Workshop to Raise Awareness and Launch the Republic of Tajikistan’s Roadmap on Countering Terrorist Threats against Vulnerable Targets and a 2022 Central Asia-focused regional workshop on vulnerable targets protection from terrorist attacks.

The study visit took place within the framework of the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe’s unified budget project “Supporting Tajikistan’s National Strategy and Action Plan on Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism for 2021-2025”, which seeks to assist the host country in implementing its counter-terrorism commitments in line with pertinent OSCE standards and principles.