In its first visit to the region, the United Nations Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), acting on behalf of the Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC), concluded an on-site assessment visit on behalf of the Counter-Terrorism Committee to Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia from 10 to 21 October 2022.
The visiting delegation consisted of CTED experts, as well as experts from the following United Nations bodies and international organizations: The Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team pursuant to resolutions 1526 (2004) and 2253 (2015) concerning ISIL (Da’esh), Al-Qaida and the Taliban and associated individuals and entities; the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC); the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO); the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE); and the Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism (MONEYVAL).
The visit enabled the delegation to assess progress made by the three states in adopting measures to implement Security Council resolution 1373 (2001) and other relevant Security Council resolutions. Country visits are one of the key channels of the Counter-Terrorism Committee to engage and conduct a constructive dialogue with Member States with a view to achieving effective implementation of the relevant Security Council counter-terrorism resolutions. The human rights aspects of the region’s counter-terrorism measures and the role of women in countering terrorism and violent extremism were also raised during the discussions.
The delegation also held separate meetings with civil society organizations, and made an on-site visits to the Lavori?k?s border crossing point between Lithuania and Belarus, Riga Airport, and the Port of Tallinn.
CTED was established as a special political mission by Security Council resolution 1535 (2004) to assist the work of the CTC and coordinate the process of monitoring the implementation of resolution 1373 (2001). CTED’s work includes conducting expert assessments through country visits to assess Member States’ counter-terrorism efforts, including progress made, remaining shortfalls, and priority areas for technical assistance needs, as well as identifying trends, challenges and good practices employed in the implementation of relevant Security Council resolutions.
Since its inception, CTED has conducted 182 visits to 112 UN Member States on behalf of the Counter-Terrorism Committee, as of September 2022.