Federal Minister for Interior Ahsan Iqbal and Ambassador Masood Khalid in the 86th INTERPOL General Assembly in Beijing on 26th Sep. 2017.

Minister Iqbal represented Pakistan at the opening ceremony of 86th General Assembly of INTERPOL on September 26, 2017 in Beijing. The Assembly was opened by President Xi Jinping of China and attended by over 100 countries including around 40 ministers from various countries. The INTERPOL General Assembly will continue till September 29 and will discuss a broad range of issues related to global security, counter-Terrorism and organized crime.

Minister Ahsan Iqbal said, Pakistan is strongly committed to cooperation for peace and security at both regional and global levels as it pursues an an inclusive development agenda and has been a major victim of terrorism. Pakistan has achieved significant success in defeating the menace of terrorism in last four years and willing to share its experiences with international community. The growing challenge of globalization at all levels requires a collaborative approach to tackle terrorism, cyber crime, narcotics trade and human smuggling. Police in Pakistan is playing a leading role in fighting crime in Pakistan. We are committed to modernizing Pakistan's Police for meeting challenges of twenty first century. Today terrorists and criminals are forming global networks which require strong global network and collaboration of crime fighting organizations. Pakistan is strongly committed to the charter of INTERPOL and looks forward to work with international community for promoting peace and security. President Xi's vision of global security governance based on inclusive and fair approach is need of the time. Global security cant be ensured unless it addresses security concerns of all. There can be no haves and have nots in peace and security. All countries are entitled to peace and stability to provide better quality of life to their citizens. Pakistan welcomes China's big commitment announced by President Xi to help developing countries capacity in fighting crime.

Meeting of Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal with Meng Jianzhu, member of politbureau and head of legal and political committee of CPC central committee

On the sidelines of the General Assembly, Minister Ahsan Iqbal held bilateral meetings with Minster of Internal Affairs of Russia Vladimir Kolokoltsev, Minister of Internal Affairs of Turkey, Tajikistan and other participating Ministers.

Separately, Minister Ahsan Iqbal also held a bilateral meeting with Meng Jianzhu, Member of Politbureau of Communist Party of China and Head of Political and legal Committee of CPC Central Committee. The meeting was also attended by Mr Guo Shengkun, Minister for Public Security of China. Issues of bilateral cooperation and mutual interest were discussed during the meeting. Mr. Iqbal termed CPEC as a game changer for Pakistan-China friendship, which has transformed bilateral relations from higher than Himalayas to higher than stars. CPEC will make invaluable contribution to bring peace and prosperity to conflict hit region by bringing economic opportunities. Pakistan has raised 10,000 personnel special force for protection of Chinese workers in Pakistan. The two sides agreed to further strengthen bilateral cooperation in the areas of counter terrorism, fighting organized crime, easing of visas and strengthening security cooperation.

(Source: The Embassy of Pakistan in Beijing)