Pakistan, Iran agree to enhance cooperation in trade, counter-terrorism

Sartaj Aziz addressed a joint press briefing with Iran's Secretary of Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani

Pakistan and Iran have agreed to enhance cooperation in trade, economy and counter-terrorism, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz said on Wednesday.

“There is a need for the two countries to work together through better and closer coordination in tracking and controlling existing and emerging terrorist threats in the region,” Aziz said during a joint press conference with the Secretary of Supreme National Security Council of Iran Ali Shamkhani in Islamabad.

"We agreed to cooperate more to tackle this menace and the related problems of smuggling and drug trafficking."

The two countries discussed various proposals to enhance cooperation in different fields such as defence, energy and communication.



According to a Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement, Aziz said Pakistan and Iran already had several institutional mechanisms to enhance cooperation, including Joint Economic Commission, Joint Border Commission and Joint Commission on Road Transport, which will be utilised in future.

"We also agreed to continue exploring new avenues of cooperation while striving to further deepen cooperation in trade and investment fields for the mutual benefit of our peoples," added the adviser.