ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Iran have agreed to strengthen cooperation on counterterrorism, counternarcotics, illegal immigration and human smuggling, the interior ministry in Islamabad said on Thursday, as the two neighbors seek closer coordination to tackle shared cross-border security challenges.
The two countries share a roughly 900-kilometer border that has long been vulnerable to militant activity, narcotics trafficking and illegal cross-border movement. Both governments have in recent years sought to improve security coordination following periodic tensions over cross-border attacks.
The agreement came during talks between Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and his Iranian counterpart, Eskandar Momeni, during the latter’s three-day visit to Islamabad.
“Both interior ministers agreed to enhance cooperation in the fields of counterterrorism, counternarcotics, combating illegal immigration, and preventing human smuggling,” the Pakistani interior ministry said after the talks.
“They also emphasized the need for a coordinated approach to curb terrorism and narcotics trafficking along the Afghan border.”
The ministry said the ministers also discussed bilateral relations, trade and ways to strengthen institutional coordination between the two countries.
The visit comes as Pakistan continues to call for dialogue to ease renewed tensions between Iran and the United States following the collapse of a Pakistan-mediated ceasefire agreement reached last month under which Washington and Tehran had agreed to halt hostilities and pursue further negotiations. The agreement unraveled after both sides resumed military strikes, raising fears of a wider regional conflict.
Islamabad has urged both sides to halt hostilities and resume talks, warning that continued conflict threatens regional stability.
