PR No. 229 DELEGATION OF ITALIAN THINK TANK CESI CALLS ON STATE MINISTER FOR INTERIOR Islamabad: April 25, 2017

A three-member delegation of Italian think tank Centro Studi Internazionali (CeSI) led by its chairperson Prof. Andrea Magelletti called on Minister of State for Interior, Engnr. Muhammad Baligh ur Rehman here on Tuesday.

Prof. Magelleti briefed the Minister on their organization’s working and its advisory role for the last three consecutive governments of Italy in the field of Foreign Relations, Defense, Internal Security and Counter Terrorism. Minister welcomed the delegation and shared with them the experiences of the present government in fight against terrorism and militancy, especially the successes of Operation Zarb e Azb and other security initiatives taken under the National Action Plan. Minister also informed the delegation that counter terrorism gains are being consolidated and residual threat of terrorism is being eliminated through recently launched Operation Raddul Fasaad wherein security agencies are eliminating terrorist hideouts in every nook and corner of the country.

He informed the delegation that through these intelligence based operations, our security agencies recently foiled a major attack planned on Easter in Lahore. “We have destroyed terrorist support networks within the country and ensured stricter border control to stop infiltration by terrorist factions operating from Afghanistan”, Minister said.  He further said that the present government’s security policies have brought the much needed peace back to Karachi, the economic hub of the country. While reaffirming government’s commitment to completely stamp out terrorism from the country, he said “We shall leave no stone unturned and spare none having terrorism links”.

Prof. Magelleti acknowledged Pakistan’s sacrifices and appreciated the government’s role in fight against terrorism. “The counter-terrorism and economic initiatives of Pakistan have brought about stability and a promising future for the region”, he said.  He said that other countries can greatly benefit from the experiences of Pakistani government in countering terrorist threats. Prof. Magelleti further said that his organization would be pleased to facilitate counter terrorism cooperation between Italy and Pakistan, particularly in the field of training and capacity building. Minister welcomed the organization’s support and said that the government would keenly consider the cooperation prospects with Italy in combating terrorism.

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