OSCE Office supports co-operation of border and customs officers from Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan

DUSHANBE, 18 May 2012 – A three-day OSCE workshop on the detection and identification of forged documents for Border Troops and Customs Services from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan concluded in Dushanbe today.

Mid-rank and front-line officers from Tajikistan’s Border Troops and Customs Service, and Kyrgyzstan’s Border Troops and State Customs Service, who are involved in travel document management and security, took part in the workshop, which was organized by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan.

"This workshop continues the series of seminars, which have been previously organized twice in Dushanbe for border agencies in Tajikistan and Afghanistan, and most recently in February 2011, for border troops from Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan,” said Alastair Livingston, Head of the Political Military Department at the OSCE Office in Tajikistan. “The workshop was an example of practical assistance that OSCE field operations can provide in strengthening regional co-operation in Central Asia."

"This workshop assisted the border and customs agencies in strengthening their professional capacity in their day-to-day work in the identification of forged and counterfeit travel documents,” added Erdal Duzdaban, Border Management Officer at the OSCE Office in Tajikistan.

During the workshop, participants studied the structure and nature of document control, the security features of travel documents, commonly used falsification methods, forged document detection techniques, and the examination of travel documents. An experienced border police expert from Turkish National Police Headquarters led the workshop and shared Turkey’s experiences in the detection and identification of forged travel documents.