In the context of the 16th Regular Session of the Inter-American Committee against Terrorism (CICTE), Chile was elected by acclamation to hold the Presidency of the Committee for the 2016-2017 period. Likewise, Panama was chosen to serve as Vice-President and Argentina as the Rapporteur of the Committee.
The 16th CICTE Declaration XVI entitled "Strengthening Cooperation and Development in Cyber Security and Counter-Terrorism in the Americas" as well as the Work Plan for 2016 was approved.
CICTE was established in 1999 and its main objective is to promote and develop cooperation among Member States of the Organization of American States (OAS) to prevent, combat and eliminate terrorism in accordance with the principles of the OAS Charter, with the Inter-American Convention against Terrorism, and with full respect for the sovereignty of States, the rule of law and international law, including international humanitarian law, international law of human rights and international refugee law.
In assuming the presidency of CICTE, Chile reaffirms its commitment to the fight against terrorism, promoting cooperation between OAS Member States to strengthen the pathways and mechanisms of cooperation to combat this threat.
During its CICTE presidency, Chile seeks to promote the strengthening of cyber security cooperation and development in the region. To achieve this, a National Cyber Security Policy will be released this year, which will help improve safety standards in cyberspace and promote cooperation with other countries in this area.