VIENNA, 20 July 2021 – The Vice President of the OSCE PA and Chair of its Ad Hoc Committee on Countering Terrorism Reinhold Lopatka addressed today the OSCE Security Committee. This is the fourth time the CCT contributes to official Security Commitee sessions since its creation in 2017.
Reinhold Lopatka addressing the OSCE Security Committee, 20 July 2021During his intervention, Lopatka underlined how the OSCE PA brings a distinct parliamentary contribution on key issues on the international counter-terrorism agenda, such as addressing the challenges stemming from foreign terrorist fighters, promoting border security in line with United Nations Security Council 2396, preventing terrorism especially on-line, supporting the rights of the victims of terrorism and violent extremism, and better understanding the intersection of terrorism with other serious crimes, such as terrorist financing and money laundering. In this regard, he shared with the participants the lessons learned during the recent meetings of the Ad Hoc Committee and announced relevant future plans, including in terms of bringing together legislators from various OSCE regions to increase policy convergence on critical issues.
In order to better address the recent developments and security challenges, Lopatka stated “it is paramount to stand united," and reiterated the committee's determination to complement the important work of other key actors in this field, such as the OSCE, the United Nations and relevant inter-parliamentary assemblies.
He concluded his address by expressing the hope that participating States will find consensus on a counter-terrorism decision at the next Ministerial Council Meeting in December. The last OSCE Ministerial Council text on fighting and preventing terrorism dates back to 2016.
