Five Caspian states pool efforts to respond to drug trafficking

ASHGABAT, June 26 (Itar-Tass) -- The first international conference on the fight against drug trafficking in the Caspian seaports opened on Tuesday, the press service of the Turkmen government said.

Representatives of the five Caspian countries and several
international organisations discussed joint efforts aimed at the
implementation of the Paris Pact signed in May 2003, the press service
said.

The document envisages strengthening of the border control in the
Central Asian countries, creation of the legal and institutional basis for
the fight against drug trafficking, organised crime and corruption, as
well as improvement of the regional cooperation, the press service said.

"Fight against drug addiction and drug trafficking is the most
complicated and tricky problem in the world," Turkmen President Gurbanguly
Berdymukhammedov said in his telegram to the participants in the
conference.

"Only if all countries and international organisations pool their
efforts, they can fight against that common menace," he said.

"With this in mind, Turkmenistan considers the fight of the kind as
one of priorities in its state policy," Berdymukhammedov said.

The participants in the meeting also discussed the possibility to
include Turkmenbashi seaport in the container control program, which is
being fruitfully implemented in several countries, including Pakistan,
Ecuador, Ghana and Senegal, the governmental press service said.

With this in mind, a series of consultations and talks will be held.