Kyrgyzstan has proposed establishing a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Center to Combat Transnational Organized Crime in Bishkek, according to the press service of the State Committee for National Security (SCNS).
The initiative has received consistent high-level support: President Sadyr Japarov has repeatedly raised the idea at SCO summits. The SCO Secretariat has also acknowledged the “potential” for locating the center in Kyrgyzstan’s capital.
As Kyrgyzstan prepares to assume the SCO rotating chairmanship in 2025, Bishkek has confirmed its readiness to swiftly launch the center. Its creation aligns with key priorities of Kyrgyzstan’s chairmanship — strengthening joint efforts against terrorism, extremism, cyber threats, drug trafficking, and organized crime.
The proposed Bishkek center would become the SCO’s third permanent body, alongside the Secretariat in Beijing and the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) in Tashkent. While RATS focuses on counterterrorism, the Bishkek hub will target non-terrorist transnational threats — including financial crime, human and goods trafficking, organized crime logistics, and cyber-enabled economic offenses.
Discussions among SCO interior ministers and security agencies also include plans for an Anti-Narcotics Center in Dushanbe and a Multi-Threat Response Center in Tashkent (building on RATS’ infrastructure). These new entities aim to streamline responsibilities and reduce RATS’ operational burden by specializing in distinct threat categories.
Core functions of the Bishkek center will include:
- Real-time exchange of operational intelligence,
- Profiling and mapping organized crime groups,
- Coordinating joint cross-border investigations,
- Synchronizing international manhunts,
- Establishing rapid-response channels for crimes ranging from smuggling to crypto-fraud.
Kyrgyz security agencies report having already severed links between organized crime networks and terrorist/extremist structures — a critical foundation for the center’s effective launch. This readiness was formally confirmed during RATS Council meetings.
The political framework is also in place: In March 2025, Bishkek hosted consultations on simplifying visa procedures for law enforcement and operational teams — a key enabler for practical cooperation.
Kyrgyzstan’s 2025–2026 SCO chairmanship is themed “25 Years of SCO: Together Toward Sustainable Peace, Development, and Prosperity,” with security and transnational crime prevention among its top priorities.
CentralasianLIGHT.org
Sept. 10, 2025