ISLAMABAD: Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has warned that at least 22 terrorist organisations are regrouping in Afghanistan, stressing that Pakistan is standing “like a wall between terrorists and the rest of the world.” He made these remarks while representing Pakistan at an international conference focused on illegal immigration and human smuggling.
The six-country interior ministers’ conference was held in Warsaw, where Naqvi briefed participants about the security situation along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. He called for stronger global cooperation to deal with terrorism, human trafficking and other cross-border crimes.
Interior ministers from Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania attended the meeting, along with Finland’s state secretary. The participants appreciated Pakistan’s actions against illegal migration and human smuggling. They agreed to prepare a joint roadmap to discourage illegal migration while encouraging safe and legal migration channels. The countries also decided to appoint focal persons within their interior ministries to improve coordination and cooperation.
During the discussions, special attention was given to internal security, counterterrorism, border control and anti-narcotics efforts. The ministers emphasized the need for better intelligence sharing between law enforcement agencies. Naqvi said Pakistan’s strict crackdown on human smuggling networks has shown positive results, claiming that illegal migration from Pakistan to Europe has dropped by 47 percent. He added that close cooperation between Pakistan and European nations is key to tackling the issue effectively.
Separately, during a visit to Rome, Naqvi met with his counterparts from Italy, Spain and Greece on the sidelines of another conference on illegal migration. The European ministers praised Pakistan’s steps to curb human smuggling and supported its proposal to reduce irregular migration by creating structured legal pathways.
In an important development, the participating countries agreed that the European Union would strengthen Pakistan’s capacity to combat illegal immigration and support institutions working in this area. Both sides also decided to adopt a comprehensive strategy to fight human trafficking and drug smuggling, develop a joint policy framework and ensure the return of criminals involved in serious crimes from Europe to Pakistan for legal action.
The ministers agreed to enhance cooperation in all areas of shared interest and to set up a rapid response system for coordinated action. It was also decided that the next meeting will be hosted by Pakistan later this year, reflecting growing collaboration between Islamabad and European partners on security and migration challenges.
