ISLAMABAD, April 4: Pakistan and the Netherlands have agreed to boost defence cooperation, particularly in the areas of intelligence sharing and deployment of crisis response missions, and enhance coordination efforts in Afghanistan to bring stability to that country.

Dutch Defence Minister Henk Kamp told reporters on Tuesday after a meeting with his Pakistani counterpart Rao Sikandar Iqbal here that the Netherlands had appointed a permanent military representative in Islamabad to enhance defence cooperation with Pakistan.

He said Pakistan was a well-known country and it was important for his country to have good relations with Islamabad in all fields.

The Dutch minister said that both countries had concluded an agreement to support the deployment of Dutch troops in Urdgan province of Afghanistan and an MoU on intelligence exchange would also be signed in the near future.

In response to a question, he said Pakistani soldiers were excellent professionals and their participation in peacekeeping missions and crisis response operations was appreciable.

He said his country was satisfied with Pakistani cooperation in Afghanistan, peacekeeping missions and its participation in the CTF 150 naval operation in the Arabian Gulf which is being led by the Netherlands and its command would be handed over to Pakistan by the end of this month.

In reply to a question, he said that Pakistan’s role in the war on terrorism was commendable as it had provided excellent back-up to Dutch troops. He said Nato and Pakistani forces were busy in counterterrorism efforts on both sides of the Pakistan-Afghan border and stressed the need for enhancing their coordination and cooperation to make it a complete success.

He appreciated Pakistan’s cooperation with Nato in Afghanistan to curb the menace of terrorism. He said the Netherlands had already contributed 1,000 troops to Nato forces in Afghanistan over the last four years and it had decided to extend their stay for two more years. He said Pakistan’s support to Nato and its forces was vital to bringing peace and stability in Afghanistan and he had discussed with the defence minister various aspects of this cooperation.

Mr Kemp said that a stable Afghanistan was very important for the whole region.