Russia, Serbia to Work on ISIL Militants' Identification Among Refugees

The Interior Ministries of Russia and Serbia are ready to cooperate on countering terrorism, including the intrusion of Islamic State militants into countries disguised as refugees, the Russian Interior Ministry's press service said Wednesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russian Deputy Interior Minister Igor Zubov and Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic discussed cooperation between the ministries during a working meeting in Moscow.

"Zubov underlined that nowadays the cooperation in countering extremism and terrorism is especially important, and emphasized a high probability of penetration of the so-called Islamic State militants in European states under the guise of refugees. [He] expressed readiness on cooperation with Serbia's law enforcement in the sphere," the press service statement read.

The meeting covered experience and information exchange to ensure public order at large-scale sporting events, prompt response to requests through Interpol channels, as well as education and training of personnel.

Zubov invited specialists from Serbia to participate in a June 2016 session of a working group on the fight against crime hosted by the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation in the southern Russian city of Sochi.

Col. Gen. Andrei Kartapolov, the chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, said earlier that up to 100 ISIL and Nusra Front militants crossed the Syrian-Turkish border daily disguised as refugees.