More Work Needed to Secure Iran-Pak Border

A senior commander expressed satisfaction at the better state of security along Iran-Pakistan border, but said the two countries are a long way away from fully securing their shared border.

Speaking to IRNA on Sunday, Border Police Commander Lieutenant General Qasem Rezaei said the two sides have developed closer contact and coordination over the past couple of months, but Iran still incurs an unusually huge cost for patrolling its 909-kilometer border with its eastern neighbor.

“We expect the Pakistani government to pay greater attention to its border with Iran and increase its guards across the border to better control the movement of people,” he said.

Rezaei said a Pakistani delegation is expected to arrive in Iran soon to discuss border cooperation.

Iran has frequently complained to Islamabad about Pakistan-based terrorists who frequently mount cross-border attacks against security forces in Iran’s southeastern Sistan-Baluchestan Province.

In the latest attack, 11 Iranian border guards were killed and three others injured in a terrorist attack claimed by Jaish ul-Adl near the border town of Mirjaveh late April.

Tehran reacted angrily to the attack, warning that “its patience was wearing thin” over Pakistan’s lack of cooperation.

Early August, the Pakistani Army stationed more units along its Iran border to ensure better security in areas terrorists used earlier to launch cross-border attacks against Iran.