Document #1050631
USDOS – US Department of State (Author)
AZERBAIJAN
Overview: Azerbaijan actively opposed terrorist organizations seeking to move people, money, and material through the Caucasus. The government has had some success in reducing the presence of terrorist facilitators and hampering their activities.
Legislation and Law Enforcement: Government law enforcement bodies pursued suspected terrorist groups and facilitators operating in Azerbaijan and implemented measures to strengthen border security and maritime domain awareness. The Government of Azerbaijan completed the modernization of its Central Reference Laboratory, a state-of-the-art biosafety facility that will make joint research on potential bioterrorism threats possible. Through the Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation Prevention Program, the Azerbaijan government assumed responsibility for the sustainment of seven radar stations along the Caspian coast used by the Navy, Coast Guard, and State Border Service to conduct maritime surveillance and detect smuggling threats. On border security, the State Border Service installed new portal monitors during its upgrade at the Ganja international airport, a project assisted by the Department of Energy's Second Line of Defense Program (SLD). Azerbaijan also launched the National Communication System pilot project, a new SLD initiative to centralize information received from portal monitors at various border crossings.
Countering Terrorist Finance: Azerbaijan is a member of the Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism (MONEYVAL), a Financial Action Task Force-style regional body. The Government of Azerbaijan has demonstrated an increasing level of professionalism in anti-money laundering and counterterrorist financing (AML/CTF) since 2009, when it adopted AML/CTF legislation. Azerbaijan continued to work with MONEYVAL to address the full range of AML/CTF issues identified in its Mutual Evaluation Report.
For further information on money laundering and financial crimes, we refer you to the 2011 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR), Volume 2, Money Laundering and Financial Crimes: http://www.state.gov/j/inl/rls/nrcrpt/index.htm.
Regional and International Cooperation: Throughout 2011, working groups composed of representatives of Azerbaijan and the other four Caspian Sea littoral states met to coordinate law enforcement efforts aimed at countering terrorism as well as smuggling, narcotics trafficking, and organized crime on the Caspian. This work followed up on a November 2010 security cooperation agreement among the Caspian Sea littoral states.