Islamic extremist groups pose a serious threat to the Central Asian region. In April, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said that the North Caucasus-based Imarat Kavkaz militant group had pledged allegiance to the IS. Approximately 1,700 Russians are said to be fighting with Islamic State militants, according to the FSB. Hundreds of Tajik, Uzbek, Kazakh and Kyrgyz citizens are also believed to have joined the extremists' ranks.
"Our eighth meeting of the heads of national anti-terrorist centers, to be held tomorrow [Thursday, June 17], will be largely devoted to these issues," Andrey Novikov, the head of the ATC, said at a session marking 15 years since ATC’s establishment.
CIS member states are perturbed by extremist groups' — including the Islamic state — intensified recruitment campaigns and proximity to Central Asia’s southern borders, Novikov said.
The Islamic State is a Sunni jihadist group that since 2014 has captured vast territories in Iraq and Syria, proclaiming a caliphate on the lands that have fallen under its control. The group’s affiliates also reportedly operate in North Africa, Yemen, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
