Pakistan and China have agreed to establish a rapid response mechanism to counter terrorism and crime, marking a significant enhancement of their bilateral security cooperation following high-level ministerial discussions.
The understanding was reached during a meeting in the Chinese capital between Pakistan’s Interior Minister, Mohsin Naqvi, and his counterpart, Wang Xiaohong, who held in-depth talks on security collaboration.
A key outcome of the dialogue is a commitment to more frequent engagement, with a Joint Working Group scheduled to convene every three months and the respective interior ministers planning to meet annually to review progress.
Minister Naqvi briefed the Chinese side on comprehensive security arrangements for its citizens and projects, stating their protection is a top national priority. He confirmed that Pakistan is establishing a special protection unit in Islamabad to further safeguard Chinese nationals.
In response, Minister Wang expressed satisfaction with the security measures and praised Pakistan”s counter-terrorism efforts, noting that China highly values the sacrifices made by the nation in combating the menace.
The two sides also agreed on a joint strategy to improve the professional capacity of police and security personnel through expanded training exchange programmes and the sharing of information and experience between their security institutions.
Pakistan formally requested Chinese assistance in tackling cybercrime, with Minister Naqvi highlighting a desire to benefit from the expertise of Chinese institutions to strengthen the National Cyber Crimes Investigation Agency. He also noted that AI-based Chinese technologies could greatly assist Pakistan in addressing its security challenges.
Discussions also touched upon the sister-city cooperation between Islamabad and Beijing.
Minister Naqvi extended an invitation to his Chinese counterpart to visit Pakistan, while Minister Wang invited the Pakistani delegation to participate in the Global Security Cooperation Forum scheduled to be held in China in September of this year.