Patnesh, the newsletter of the Armenian Center of research on non-proliferation issues has published in its latest issue an article featuring the ISTC-implemented in countries of Central Asia and adjacent regions strategic targeted initiative – CBRN Export Control on Dual Use Materials and Intangible Technologies. Funded by the EU, the initiative aims to engage the academic communities in the CBRN area of knowledge, who are involved in intangible technology transfers and in education and training of export control professionals. At the same time, the project stimulates and helps the participating countries to build relevant national legal frameworks, policy provisions and administrative capacities to fulfil their international obligations under the export control regimes. In the course of the project, researchers and academicians from Armenia, Afghanistan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan take part in a series of workshops and seminars on developing university courses for government officials, reaching out to the relevant industries, networking and exchanging academic experience and expertise.  

The article, authored by ISTC’s Senior Program Manager and Diplomatic Advisor Kamen Velichkov, examines the projects and emphasizes that ISTC is well positioned to implement successfully the project drawing on the vast lore of its achievements and experience in Central Asia and the Caucuses, and using its regional branches in Yerevan, Tbilisi, Dushanbe and Bishkek. ISTC is also capable of grouping the export control with other non-proliferation projects (e.g. in nuclear or biological security) that are conceptually and practically linked. The article highlights the contribution to the export control initiative of Armenian partners from the Research Center for the problem of non-proliferation of WMD, the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant CJSC, the National Academy of Sciences, the Ministry of Economic Development and Investments and others.

As one of the project participating countries, Armenia hosted last November in Yerevan a conference devoted to the issues of export control on dual use of goods and technologies. The event, co-organized by ISTC and the Ministry of Investment and Development of Kazakhstan is featured in and information titled “Exchange of Information and Experience” in the latest issue 3 (28) 2018 of PATNESH under the topic Bridges. Gathering over 100 participants from the project participating countries, the main purpose of the conference was to discuss the creation of a training educational program of master classes for university student, and the establishment of an information portal on the basis of the existing pool of data that can introduce the European lists of dual use goods. The conference in Yerevan was a continuation of two-year work among the participating countries. The training component included not only presentations and reports but also gamified group-work elements that made the presented material more practical and easy to absorb.