Kabul, Islamabad jointly fighting terror: Khar

KABUL, reaffirming its support for an Afghan-led reconciliation process, has said Kabul and Islamabad have joined hands against the scourge of terrorism in the region.

“We have taken steps toward building a strategic relationship to jointly fight terrorism. This is a multi-pronged approach,” Pakistan’s foreign minister told the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday.

Peace and stability in Afghanistan would have a direct salutary impact on Pakistan, Hina Rabbani Khar argued, explaining Islamabad’s counter-terrorism approach was based on three Ds — deterrence, development and dialogue.

Pakistan, which holds the 15-member council’s presidency for the month of January, was rocked this last week, by a string of deadly bombings. More than 100 people were killed in the attacks in Balochistan province.

“We must we must persevere in our efforts to deter and defeat terrorists militarily. And yet our success has at best been partial,” she was quoted as saying by the Associated Press of Pakistan news agency.

Calling terrorism a sinister threat to international peace and security, she underlined the need for the global fraternity to put up a joint front against the menace.  “Our strategies and responses must also be global.”

About Pakistan’s sacrifices, she said, “Much of the success in global fight against terrorism has been made possible with our support and active cooperation. This success has come with a heavy cost to Pakistan.”

Around 150,000 Pakistani troops were deployed on its border with Afghanistan to deal with threats from insurgents, the minister said, adding 7,000 Pakistani soldiers and policemen and over 37,000 civilians had lost their lives to terrorism.

PAN Monitor/mud

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