The Dutch Foreign Minister, Bernard Bot, on Sunday praised Pakistan for its efforts in the fight against terrorism.
"Minister Bot expressed appreciation for Pakistan's efforts in the fight against terrorism," Dutch embassy said in a statement released after his meeting with Pakistani counterpart Khurshid Kasuri in Islamabad.
Bot "encouraged Pakistan and Afghanistan to further strengthen and deepen their good neighbourly relations," it said.
The Dutch foreign minister, who also visited the Afghan capital, Kabul, on Saturday, asked Pakistan to seal its border with Afghanistan to stop infiltration of militants, and also called on Nato nations to send more troops.
"Both ministers agreed that a stable, peaceful and prosperous Afghanistan is of vital interest to the countries in the region and the world at large," the statement said.
Bot also told Kasuri that the Netherlands was interested in stepping into development efforts in Pakistan's tribal areas bordering Afghanistan. Kasuri "stressed the need to seal the Pakistan-Afghanistan border," Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"He (Kasuri) said that the border could be fenced and jointly monitored," the statement said. Bot welcomed Pakistan's readiness to seal the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan and told Kasuri that he would discuss this with other Nato partners, the Ministry said. The Netherlands has 1,700 troops in the Nato-led force in Afghanistan. Some 1,500 Dutch soldiers are deployed in the southern province of Uruzgan to help stabilise and develop the province.
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