Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Interior minister Chaudhry Nisar has said that Pakistan is in the process of raising Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) founder Altaf Hussain’s matter with the British authorities, saying there was a complete consensus to deal with the issue.

“The perception in the UK about [Altaf Hussain] and his activities is very different from the one in Pakistan,” the minister said while addressing a press conference with the British Home Secretary Amber Rudd in Islamabad on Tuesday.

“As the representative of this government, I feel that it has become a small irritant in an otherwise all-encompassing relationship between two countries,” He said.

Nisar added that the two countries have evolved a total consensus, as was done before, as to how to go forward [on this matter] within the limitations of the authorities and legal restraints in the two countries. “We have discussed with the home secretary the issue of Pakistanis that are illegally residing in the UK. The two sides also deliberated on cooperation against terrorism and exchanging information in this regard,” he added.

Reciprocating, Amber Rudd praised Pakistan’s security institutions for their fight against terror. “I would like to pay tribute to the hard work of Pakistan’s police and its armed forces in delivering significant improvements in security across the country over the last two years,” Rudd said.

Acknowledging that the country was still facing considerable challenges, Rudd added that the hard work of the forces had brought security not only to the people of Pakistan, but also to citizens of the United Kingdom. “Pakistan has suffered more than most from the scourge of terrorism,” the home secretary said. Rudd said Pakistan and the UK had worked together to tackle challenges in terrorism, extremism and organised crime but “there was more that remains to be done”. She announced that the special envoy to the British prime minister on counter-terrorism will be visiting Pakistan shortly to ‘expand cooperation [between the two countries] structured around Pakistan’s own National Action Plan.’