A joint meeting of the Ministries of Internal Affairs of Belarus and Russia will be held in Vitebsk in the near future

June 26, Minsk /BelTA/. A joint board of the Ministries of Internal Affairs of Belarus and Russia will be held in Vitebsk in the near future, Belarusian Interior Minister Igor Shunevich announced today at a meeting of the 42nd session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union of Belarus and Russia, BelTA correspondent reports. "In a few days, a joint board of the ministries of internal affairs will be held in Vitebsk," said the head of the Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs. He explained that the main topics of the board will be issues of countering extremism and information exchange. Speaking about the progress of the implementation of the Union program "Combating Crime in the Territories of the States Parties to the Treaty on the Creation of the Union State for the period 2008-2012," the minister emphasized that the cooperation between Belarusian and Russian colleagues yields significant results. The interaction of the law enforcement agencies of the two countries has made it possible to reduce the crime growth rate. A comprehensive system of anti-criminal interaction has been created, and tactics for the search and detention of persons on the interstate wanted list have been worked out. Among the most pressing threats for the two countries, the minister named illegal migration, other types of cross-border crime, and corruption. In turn, Deputy State Secretary of the Union State Alexey Kubrin, speaking about the mentioned program, reported that 617 million Russian rubles were allocated for it (100-140 million Russian rubles per year). He noted that a more rhythmic targeted use of this money is necessary. According to the Deputy State Secretary, work on the search and extradition of leaders of criminal groups is being carried out quite effectively. The same applies to migration issues. As a positive example of the program's implementation, he also cited the introduction of new technical means, including the ACPO (Association of Chief Police Officers) communication system. This allows for the coordination of digital and analog communication systems used by the law enforcement agencies of the two countries. -0-