Two-day US-Pakistan Counterterrorism Dialogue Concludes in Islamabad

Islamabad: Senior officials of the United States and their Pakistani counterparts opened the Pakistan-U.S. Counterterrorism Dialogue on March 6 at the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad. The two-day policy-focused meeting was chaired by the U.S. Department of State Acting Coordinator for Counterterrorism Christopher Landberg and Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Additional Secretary for the UN and Economic Diplomacy Syed Haider Shah.

The Dialogue provided an opportunity to discuss the counterterrorism landscape in Pakistan and the broader region, with a focus on areas where the United States and Pakistan can better collaborate to counter regional and global threats, improve cooperation, prevent and counter violent extremism, and combat terrorism financing. Both governments resolved to increase dialogue on these topics and continue discussing paths to restart or introduce counterterrorism programs to assist Pakistan’s efforts to better counter all forms of violent extremism.

The Counterterrorism Dialogue underscores the deepening cooperation between the United States and Pakistan in a range of areas. These partnerships are being advanced through high-level bilateral meetings like the recently concluded Trade and Investment Framework (TIFA) Council Ministerial in Washington, DC, and the upcoming Strategic Energy Dialogue and Climate and Environment Working Group meetings in Pakistan. The Counterterrorism Dialogue is just one example of an ever-stronger bilateral relationship based on shared values and interests, and it reaffirms the United States’ and Pakistan’s shared determination to contribute to both regional and global security and stability.