Secretariat - Action against Terrorism Unit

The oldest OSCE counter-terrorism programme aimed at promoting the international legal framework against terrorism started in 2001 with the adoption of the Bucharest Ministerial commitment of OSCE participating States to become party to the 12 universal anti-terrorism instruments (UATI) that were in force at that time. This commitment was later reinforced by the 2005 Ministerial Statement on the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism and the 2006 Brussels Ministerial Statement on Supporting and Promoting the International Legal Framework against Terrorism. 

The ATU in co-operation with UNODC organizes national and sub-regional workshops promoting the ratification of the now 16 UATI and their implementation in national legislation through the proper criminalization of terrorist offences. Among such recent events were a sub-regional (Central Asia) nuclear terrorism workshop held in Tashkent in April 2007, a workshop for member States of the Commonwealth of Independent States on criminal law aspects of countering nuclear, chemical and biological terrorism in the light of relevant universal instruments, held in Minsk in January 2008, and a national legislative drafting workshop on the criminal law aspects of the universal legal framework against nuclear terrorism, held in Belgrade in February 2008.

As part of the international framework against terrorism, the ATU also promotes the implementation by participating States of the UN Security Council resolution 1373 and other resolutions related to terrorism.

In line with the 2006 Brussels Ministerial Statement, which calls on participating States "to consider becoming parties to regional and sub-regional legal instruments related to terrorism or legal co-operation in criminal matters adopted by organizations to which we belong", the ATU works with the Council of Europe in promoting the ratification and legislative implementation of the CoE instruments by OSCE participating States that are members of the CoE.

OSCE efforts aimed at promoting the international legal framework against terrorism are not limited to political commitments and awareness-raising or technical assistance workshops. The ATU also circulates updates of the status of the UATI as well as other international and regional legal instruments related to terrorism or co-operation in criminal matters and works with national authorities of OSCE participating States to encourage them to become party to the UATI and fully implement them in national legislation.

Working with the UNODC and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, the ATU also helps participating States to draft legislation and monitors the impact of anti-terrorism measures on human rights.

For more information, please contact the ATU directly.