All is set to hold counter-terrorism dialogue between Pakistan and the United States on March 6-7 in Islamabad, the Foreign Office said Sunday.
Additional Secretary (UN&ED) Syed Haider Shah will lead the Pakistan delegation and the US delegation will be headed by Acting Coordinator for Counterterrorism Christopher Landberg.
“The dialogue is aimed at discussing common threat of terrorism, cooperation at multilateral fora and countering financing of terrorism,” the Foreign Office Spokesperson said in a press release today.
According to the spokesperson of the US Department of State, the inter-agency delegation will discuss a joint strategy to combat terrorism with their Pakistani counterparts.
The spokesperson said that Acting Coordinator for Counterterrorism Christopher Landberg will lead a U.S. interagency delegation to Pakistan March 6-7 to participate in the Pakistan-U.S. Counterterrorism Dialogue.
The United States and Pakistan will discuss the shared terrorist threats facing our two countries and develop policy-oriented strategies regarding cooperation in critical areas such as border security and
countering the financing of terrorism.
“They will discuss the ‘shared terrorist threats facing the two countries’ and develop ‘policy-oriented strategies’ regarding cooperation in critical areas such as border security and countering the financing of terrorism,” the State Department said.
The two-day dialogue would provide an opportunity for both sides to exchange views and share their experiences and best practices in the domain of counter-terrorism, it was added.
The development comes against the backdrop of increasing terror incidents in Pakistan and Washington’s assurance to help the country deal with the worsening law and order situation.
Both countries share the view that Afghan soil is being used for terrorism against Pakistan. The deteriorating relationship between Islamabad and Kabul is a result of the Taliban government’s failure to crack down on terrorists operating from Afghanistan.
The talks come amid tensions between the two countries following an arrest warrant issued against Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan by a court in Pakistan. However, the spokesperson of the US Department of State clarified that it was a problem for the Pakistani people to deal
with and not the concern of the US.
The United Nations had recently revealed in a report that the Taliban have failed to fight terrorists in Afghanistan.
The talks between the US and Pakistan are expected to form a plan of action to deal with the threats of terrorism and to improve cooperation between both nations.—NNI
