UAE presents virtual currency legislation at Arab counterterrorism meeting

The United Arab Emirates participated in a meeting of Arab counterterrorism experts in Cairo, where it presented its legislation on virtual currencies and highlighted risks linked to their misuse, according to the state-run WAM news agency.

The UAE delegation attended the 38th meeting of the Arab Experts Group on Counterterrorism, held Tuesday at the headquarters of the General Secretariat of the League of Arab States.

The meeting brought together representatives from justice, interior and foreign ministries, along with other counterterrorism authorities from Arab states. Officials from the General Secretariat of the Council of Arab Interior Ministers also took part, according to WAM.

During the session, the UAE presented a working paper on the country’s legislative framework governing virtual currencies. The paper addressed the potential exploitation of such currencies by terrorist organizations.

Minister Plenipotentiary Dr Maha Bakhit, who heads the technical secretariat of the Arab Experts Group on Counterterrorism, said participants reviewed follow-up measures to implement recommendations from the group’s 37th meeting, held in Tunisia last August.

Bakhit said discussions also focused on strengthening cooperation with the United Nations and its relevant bodies.

She said participants addressed the misuse of modern technologies by terrorist groups, including cryptocurrencies, drones and digital applications, in financing and carrying out terrorist operations.

The meeting also examined ways to enhance and further develop the work of the Arab Experts Group on Counterterrorism, according to WAM.