ISLAMABAD: Germany’s Special Envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan Michael Koch has said that Kabul should extend support to Islamabad in its efforts to eliminate terrorism.

Talking to a six-member delegation of the Senate, headed by Chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs Haji Mohammad Adeel, in Berlin on Saturday, Mr Koch said his country supported the military operation in North Waziristan.

“Pakistan and Afghanistan are intertwined, and peace in the region hinges on their close cooperation and mutual support rather than distrust in tackling the menace of terrorism. Both countries will be successful if they go together,” he said.

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According to a message received here, the delegation briefed the envoy about Pakistan’s perspective on various national and international issues and updated him about the military operation under way in North Waziristan.

Mr Koch appreciated the recent passage of the Protection of Pakistan Bill.

He said Germany had an active embassy in Islamabad and it would take all steps to support Pakistan with regard to the issue of people displaced from North Waziristan.

Senator Adeel gave an overview of Pakistan’s perspective of the Afghan crisis and its impact on the people of Pakistan.

Senator Mushahid Hussain Syed said all countries neighbouring Afghanistan had strategic stakes and their involvement in the peace process could only ensure stability in the region.

He said Pakistani people showed resilience in war against terrorism, sacrificing much more than any other country and despite many odds it faced its democratic transformation with political pluralism deserved recognition and a fair and better treatment by the West.

Senator Malik Rafique Rajwana briefed the envoy on the genesis of the Protection of Pakistan Bill and the mechanism for its implementation.

Referring to the recent presidential election in Afghanistan, he said the will of people should prevail and the result should be accepted by all stakeholders.

Senator Muzaffar Hussain Syed said that people of Pakistan needed cooperation and support of the European Union to break the mindset that gave birth to extremism and terrorism and reconstruct it. Terrorism was an international phenomenon and could be tackled jointly by all nations, he added.

Published in Dawn, July 6th, 2014