Terrorist attacks on schools, shopping centers and places of worship are a growing worldwide problem.
To defend against violent extremists who target vulnerable civilians, security practitioners from more than 20 Turkmenistan government agencies participated in a two-day training held in the capital Ashgabat by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in April 2025.
“The global nature of the threat of international terrorism has necessitated the unification of international efforts to combat it,” said Geldimyrat Haldurdyyev, head of Turkmenistan’s Law and International Relations Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
This is “especially relevant against the backdrop of the challenging global situation, where armed conflicts are erupting in various parts of the world, posing a serious threat to all of humanity,” Haldurdyyev said.
Facilitating discussions of the current threat landscape, risk and crisis management, and human rights considerations, experts from the Berlin Police Department and the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism shared experiences with participants, who practiced physical security measures, detection of hostile reconnaissance and evacuation procedures.
“To better protect soft targets, it is essential to have a good understanding of how attackers behave and make decisions, what risks are present and what possible mitigation measures may be required,” John McGregor, head of the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat, said.
Source: OSCE