OSCE trains Tajik and Afghan border officers in detecting forged travel documents and combating illegal border crossings

DUSHANBE, 23 August 2013 – In an effort to strengthen the operational and analytical capacities of border management officials, twenty-two Tajik and Afghan border police officers completed today a one-week training course on detecting forged travel documents and combating illegal border crossings, organized by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan.

The course covered the structure and nature of modern border control, the identification of forged travel documents, and the prevention of illegal border crossings and other transnational criminal activities related to forged documents

An expert from the Turkish National Police offered the participants practical knowledge on these topics, including the analysis of a wide variety of sample documents and the use of modern equipment for document control.

Ambassador Markus Mueller, the Head of the OSCE Office in Tajikistan, congratulated the officers from both countries on completing the course: "Developing the skills of Tajik and Afghan border officers should not be seen only as a means of increasing capacity and efficiency of first line officers on border crossing points, but as investment in the promotion and strengthening of cross-border co-operation between the two countries, and as an effective modern approach in combating transnational criminal activities.”  

The graduation ceremony was also attended by official representatives from the Tajik Border Troops and Afghan Embassy to Tajikistan.

All the graduates currently serve at border crossing points along both sides of the Tajik–Afghan border. The training was conducted as part of a border security programme focusing on building the capacity of Tajik border security and management agencies for cooperation, and the sharing of information, experience and good practice with neighbouring countries.