Pakistan, UK agree to expand cooperation on counterterrorism, narcotics

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the United Kingdom on Friday agreed to enhance cooperation in the areas of counterterrorism, anti-narcotics, cybercrime and immigration, according to the interior ministry.

The understanding was reached during delegation-level talks between Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and visiting British Minister of State for Security Dan Jarvis at the Ministry of Interior. Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudry also attended the meeting.

According to the interior ministry, the two sides decided to finalise at the earliest a memorandum of understanding on anti-narcotics cooperation, which would fully operationalise cooperation between the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) and the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF).

Naqvi told the British minister that Pakistan had foiled 330 cases involving narcotics smuggling to the UK over the past few years.

The two sides also agreed to soon convene a meeting of the working group established between the interior ministries of the two countries.

Jarvis appreciated the performance of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in curbing illegal immigration and acknowledged Pakistan’s sacrifices and efforts in the war against terrorism.

He said cybercrime was an international challenge and all countries would have to work together to effectively address it. He added that Pakistan and the UK enjoyed excellent cooperation in various fields, which both sides wanted to further expand.

Naqvi appreciated the progress made under the UK-Pakistan Serious Crime and Law Enforcement Project, a bilateral law enforcement and security initiative, saying it was proving extremely important in enhancing the capacity of Pakistani institutions.

British High Commissioner Jane Marriott and relevant British officials attended the meeting.

Jarvis is currently on his first visit to Pakistan to discuss regional stability, counter-terrorism, serious organised crime, illegal migration and visa fraud with senior Pakistani officials.

He met with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Naqvi on Thursday.

Prior to that, Pakistan and the UK expressed concern at terrorism emanating from Afghanistan during their annual bilateral counter-terrorism dialogue in Islamabad.