ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Malaysia agreed on Saturday to increase intelligence sharing against militants and drug traffickers, as the two countries moved to deepen cooperation on security, migration and transnational crime during talks in Islamabad.
The agreement was reached during a meeting between Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and his Malaysian counterpart Saifuddin Nasution bin Ismail, whose visit comes as the two countries seek closer institutional ties spanning law enforcement, immigration, prisoner transfers and trade.
The two sides also decided to establish a joint working group between their interior ministries and strengthen coordination against human smuggling, illegal immigration and cybercrime, according to a statement from Pakistan’s interior ministry.
“The two sides agreed to suppress terrorists and drug traffickers through intelligence sharing,” the statement said.
Pakistan has faced a resurgence in militant violence in recent years, while both countries have sought greater cooperation against cross-border narcotics and human-smuggling networks.
Naqvi and Nasution also agreed to strengthen cooperation between Pakistan’s National Police Academy and the Royal Malaysia Police College, including through training programs, and discussed collaboration between their coast guard services.
Employment and travel also featured in Saturday’s discussions, with the two sides discussing tourism and visa facilitation.
Naqvi called for Malaysia to increase its work quota for Pakistanis.
“An increase in the work quota for Pakistanis will allow more Pakistanis to come to Malaysia through legal channels,” he said.
The talks followed the signing on Friday of an agreement allowing Pakistan and Malaysia to transfer convicted prisoners between the two countries, witnessed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
