Pakistan, US stand united against terrorism: Sherry

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Peoples Party Vice President and Parliamentary Leader in Senate Sherry Rehman has said Pakistan and the United States have pledged to deepen counterterrorism cooperation on key points.

“It was important that a renewed focus on tackling outlawed terrorist groups including Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), Islamic State (ISIS)-Khorasan and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) was iterated in the outcome readout. What was most significant in a joint statement after the latest round was that the US agreed for the first time to work together with Pakistan to tackle groups such as the outlawed BLA,” she said in a statement on X.

She said the two countries regularly held a counterterrorism dialogue but never before the joint statement has made actual mention of terrorist groups such as the BLA. First, she said, this latest move points to the growing security and counterterrorism cooperation between the two countries. Second, it was clear that the US did not buy India’s narrative that Pakistan was behind the April 22 Pahalgam attack. Contrary to ongoing Indian allegations, it seems that US praise for Pakistan’s continued successes to contain terrorist entities that posed a threat to the peace and security of the region and the world was a clear indication of where Washington saw Pakistan: a solution and not a problem to the terrorism issue in the region and world.

She said the joint statement said Pakistan and the US reaffirmed their shared commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. “It came a day after the State Department formally designated the BLA and its suicide squad, Majeed Brigade, as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO),” she said, adding that the development was seen as a major diplomatic victory for Pakistan at a time when India was openly supporting terrorist groups including the BLA to create instability in Balochistan. The United States applauded Pakistan’s continued successes to contain terrorist entities that pose a threat to peace and security in the region and the world.

Furthermore, she said the United States expressed condolences for the loss of civilians and members of law-enforcement agencies in terrorist incidents in Pakistan including the barbaric Jaffar Express terrorist attack and the bombing of a school bus in Khuzdar. Both sides emphasised the importance of building stronger institutional frameworks and developing capabilities to respond to security challenges and counter the use of emerging technologies for terrorist purposes. “Both sides reaffirmed their intention to work closely at multilateral fora, including the United Nations, to promote effective and enduring approaches to counterterrorism.”

On the whole, Sherry said, Pakistan and US joint counterterrorism efforts have seen a renewed push since President Donald Trump took office for his second term. “Since then, the relationship has been on the upward trajectory with frequent high-level exchanges and visits including Field Marshal Gen Asim Munir’s recent engagements at the highest level.”

This year, she said, Pakistan, acting on US intelligence, arrested and extradited one of the masterminds of the August 2021 Kabul airport attack. “That assistance led President Trump to publicly praise Pakistan in his State of the Union address,” she said.