European states praise Pakistan’s fight against smuggling in ministerial statement
Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi held meetings with his counterparts from Italy, Spain and Greece on the sidelines of a four-nation conference on illegal migration
ISLAMABAD:
Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi warned on Friday that 22 terrorist organizations are regrouping in Afghanistan, saying Pakistan currently stands as “a wall between terrorists and the world”.
The remarks came as Naqvi led Pakistan’s delegation at a six-nation interior ministers’ conference on illegal immigration and human trafficking held in Warsaw, the capital of Poland. He briefed the participants on the evolving situation along the Pak-Afghan border and called for increased international cooperation to tackle transnational threats.
Interior ministers from Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania along with Finland’s state secretary attended the meeting and praised Pakistan’s efforts against illegal migration and human trafficking. Participants agreed to develop a coordinated roadmap to counter illegal immigration while promoting legal channels of migration. They also supported joint measures to curb people-trafficking and decided to appoint contact points in their home ministries to improve coordination.
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Detailed consultations were held on internal security, counter-terrorism, border management and counter-narcotics cooperation, with participants emphasizing closer intelligence sharing between law enforcement agencies. Naqvi said Pakistan’s crackdown on people-trafficking networks had yielded encouraging results and claimed that illegal migration from Pakistan to Europe had fallen by 47%. He added that Pakistan and European countries could jointly overcome the challenge through sustained cooperation.
Productive meeting in Rome with my colleagues from Italy, Spain and Greece at the 4-nation conference on curbing illegal migration.
Pakistan, Italy, Spain and Greece agreed on a coordinated strategy against illegal migration, people-trafficking and drugs, including a joint… pic.twitter.com/46ruUqNCyb
— Mohsin Naqvi (@MohsinnaqviC42) 26 February 2026
Separately, during a visit to Rome, Naqvi held meetings with his counterparts from Italy, Spain and Greece on the sidelines of a four-nation conference on illegal migration. The European ministers praised Pakistan’s measures and supported Islamabad’s proposal to block irregular migration through structured legal channels.
In an important development, the countries agreed that the EU would strengthen Pakistan’s capacity-building efforts and fully support institutions working against illegal immigration. The parties also agreed to adopt a comprehensive multi-level strategy against human and drug trafficking, develop a common policy framework and repatriate criminals involved in serious offenses from Europe to Pakistan for prosecution.
The ministers further agreed to strengthen cooperation across areas of mutual interest and establish a rapid response mechanism for coordinated action, while deciding to hold the next meeting in Pakistan later this year.
