U.S. State Department: "Azerbaijan actively opposed terrorist organizations"

“Azerbaijan actively opposed terrorist organizations seeking to move people, money, and material through the Caucasus. The country stepped up efforts and has had some success in reducing the presence of terrorist facilitators and hampering their activities”, said US State Department in the Country Reports on Terrorism 2009.

“At the end of 2009, Azerbaijan demonstrated an increasing level of seriousness and urgency in taking steps to combat terrorist financing, and is proceeding with efforts to implement its law on anti-money laundering and counterterrorist financing (AML/CTF) and to establish a Financial Investigative Unit (FIU). The FIU has requested technical assistance from the U.S. government to improve the legal framework in the AML/CTF area, establish information systems, build capacity for AML/CTF stakeholders, and develop a mid-term strategy plan for the FIU”, it reports.

“Azerbaijan has granted blanket overflight clearance, engaged in information sharing and law-enforcement cooperation, and has approved numerous landings and refueling operations at Baku’s civilian airport in support of U.S. and International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) military operations in Afghanistan”.

The State Department also reminded that in 2007, the Ministry of National Security (MNS) arrested 15 Azerbaijani citizens who were members of the “Mahdi Army Group”. In two separate trials in October, the Court of Grave Crimes sentenced 15 Azerbaijani nationals to prison terms for participating in illegally armed groups in Pakistan and Afghanistan. It also reminded about sentencing two Lebanese citizens for links with Hezbollah, trials on the case of “Forest Brothers” group and sentencing 26 people.


/APA/