The 8th Meeting of the Russia-Pakistan Joint Working Group on Counter-Terrorism was held in Moscow on 12 November 2019. Mr. Ahmad Farooq, Director General (Counter Terrorism), Ministry of Foreign Affairs, led the Pakistan delegation, while the Russian side was led by Mr. Vladimir Tarabrin, Head of the Department of New Challenges and Threats, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. The delegations also included officials from various relevant Government departments of the two countries.
Both sides discussed wide-ranging issues pertaining to counter-terrorism and reviewed global and regional terrorism threats. The Russian side recognized Pakistan’s sacrifices and commended Pakistan’s achievements in the fight against terrorism.
The Pakistani delegation highlighted Pakistan’s efforts in countering extremism, terrorism and terror financing and highlighted progress made in these respective areas. The Russian side also apprised the Pakistani delegation about various counter terrorism efforts being taken in Russia.
Both sides expressed grave concern on the threat posed by Da’esh, especially the danger of returning Foreign Terrorist Fighters (FTFs) from the conflict zones in the Middle East. They underscored the importance of dealing with the FTFs threat in accordance with the national laws and resolutions of the UN Security Council.
The two sides expressed satisfaction over the ongoing bilateral cooperation as well as cooperation at multilateral forums including at the United Nations and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization – Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure (SCO-RATS), and agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation at these and other multilateral forums.
Both sides agreed that terrorism is a global phenomenon and its eradication requires coherent efforts from the international community. The discussions were held in a cordial atmosphere. It was agreed to hold the next meeting of the Joint Working Group in Islamabad.
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