Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The 1st Meeting of the working group of the Interpol GEIGER Project for Central Asia, held in Tashkent, has completed its work, where representatives of various services of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the State Customs Committee, the Committee for Industrial Safety, the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as experts from the General Secretariat Interpol, the US Department of Energy and the delegations of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan attended.

The main purpose of this Meeting was to assist states in building their own potential to expand their capabilities to detect radioactive and nuclear materials, respond to radiological incidents (detection, measurement, identification, collection of information, collection of evidence, etc.), conduct investigative measures when they are detected.

The Geiger project was founded in 2002, the main purpose of which is to collect and analyze information on the illegal circulation of nuclear and radioactive materials and other unauthorized activities with nuclear materials. 

The Geiger Project Interpol database is a good source of police intelligence and only members of the Interpol General Secretariat have access to the Project database. In order to obtain the necessary information, interested departments can apply for relevant information directly through their regional NCBs. 

Uzbekistan has joined the project activities since 2015, and being an active and long-term participant, as a result of previously reached agreements on the sidelines of meetings and conferences held, the NCB of Interpol initiated the creation of a Central Asian working group as a pilot project, with the involvement of new border countries. Thus, acting as a coordinator, the NCB of Interpol of Uzbekistan, with the assistance of the SG ICPO Interpol, held the 1st Meeting of the working group of the GEIGER Project for Central Asia. The main focus of this meeting was placed on interdepartmental coordination and information exchange on radiation and nuclear incidents, primarily at the national level.

During the event, the experts of the General Secretariat of Interpol and representatives of the delegations participating in the meeting highly appreciated the activities of the NCB of Interpol in the Republic of Uzbekistan and its aspiration to further build up and strengthen its potential in combating transnational crime in the name of strengthening peace.