ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Bangladesh signed a historic anti-narcotics agreement on Saturday and agreed to establish a secretary-level Joint Wor­­king Group on security cooperation.

Interior and Narcotics Cont­rol Minister Mohsin Naqvi met his Bangladeshi counterpart Salahuddin Ahmed in Dhaka, where the two ministers signed the memorandum of understanding (MoU).

A statement issued by Pak­i­stan’s Interior Ministry said that both countries would fully cooperate to curb drug smuggling and the illegal movement of narcotics. They also agreed to develop a joint strategy to dismantle narcotics supply and distribution networks.

Under the agreement, the relevant agencies of both cou­ntries will exchange timely information regarding smugglers and criminal networks. They will also share modern technology, training program­mes, and best practices for narcotics control.

The two ministers further agreed to strengthen cooperation in internal security and the training of civil armed for­ces. Their discussions included joint measures against terrorism, human smuggling, cybercrime, organised crime, and financial fraud. They also discussed cooperation in police academy training programmes. Mr Naqvi offered Bangladesh full support for the Safe City Project. Mr Naqvi invited Mr Ahmed to visit Pakistan.

Published in Dawn, May 10th, 2026