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First group of Explosive Ordnance Disposal instructors trained with OSCE support in Tajikistan

DUSHANBE, 3 June 2015 – An eight-day regional training course for a Tajik-Dari speaking group of students on Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Level 3 concluded in Dushanbe today. The course was facilitated by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan, and marks the first graduation of training instructors in the region certified according to international mine action standards.

Sixteen students – predominantly from national armed forces, but also the national Mine Action co-ordination authorities and supporting agencies from Tajikistan and Afghanistan completed the course.

“The OSCE firmly beliefs that the training of a new generation of certified EOD instructors in Central Asia will lead to a multiplier effect in reducing Explosive Hazards threats to individuals and, even more, for the sustainability of national capacities,” said Ambassador Markus Mueller, Head of the OSCE Office in Tajikistan.

Muhabbat Ibrohimzoda, Director of the Tajikistan National Mine Action Centre, said: “The ongoing EOD train-the-trainer programme is a step towards setting up the regional Explosive Hazards training centre in Tajikistan.”

Robert Burgess, Deputy Chief of Mission at the United States Embassy in Dushanbe, said: “Cross-border co-operation between Tajikistan and Afghanistan, through joint training courses and other measures, effectively contributes to regional stability and security.”

The course was hosted by Tajikistan’s Defence Ministry and facilitated by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan in partnership with the US Army Forces, Central Command. It was financed by the Government of United States, the Department of State’s Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement.

Since 2009, the OSCE has been supporting the development of technical co-operative mechanisms among the states in Central Asia and Afghanistan in order to address concerns and challenges stemming from explosive hazards.

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