Pakistan, EU to increase cooperation against terrorism

Islamabad, Feb 24: Pakistan and the EU have resolved to work together to counter the menace of terrorism, the government said here today.

The fourth EU-Pakistan Political Counter-terrorism dialogue was held in Islamabad under the framework of the EU-Pakistan 5-year Engagement Plan.

During the dialogue, the Pakistani delegation was led by Additional Secretary (UN&EC), Tasnim Aslam while the EU delegation was led by Mara Marinaki, Managing Director for Multilateral Issues, European External Action Service (EEAS).

"Both sides discussed the challenge posed by the scourge of terrorism to all regions of the world and reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen international cooperation to prevent and combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations," the Foreign Office said in a statement.

The two sides also expressed strong and unequivocal condemnation of recent terrorist attacks in Pakistan, the European Union member states and the rest of the world and exchanged views on the steps being taken by both sides to address the threat posed by terrorism.

They reaffirmed that terrorism cannot and should not be associated with any religion, nationality, civilisation or ethnic group and agreed on the importance of enhancing intercultural and inter-religious dialogue and understanding to promote tolerance and harmony.

The two sides also exchanged views on the ongoing EU-Pakistan cooperation on issues pertaining to counter- terrorism and agreed to explore ways for further strengthening this relationship including at multilateral fora, in particular at the UN.

PTI