ROME: Pakistan and Greece have agreed to implement joint measures to combat illegal immigration and human trafficking, while simultaneously working to expand legal pathways for Pakistani workers.
The consensus was reached during a meeting between Pakistan’s Interior Minister, Mohsin Naqvi, and Greece’s Minister for Migration and Asylum, Athanasios Plevris, in Rome, the interior ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.
The discussions centred on strengthening concerted efforts to dismantle human smuggling networks operating between the two countries.
Both ministers expressed a strong commitment to joint actions aimed at disrupting these criminal operations and agreed to significantly enhance future coordination.
A key outcome of the talks was the mutual agreement to promote legal migration channels as a practical alternative to irregular routes.
To facilitate this, the two sides decided to increase the issuance of work visas, enabling orderly and legal mobility for Pakistani workers seeking opportunities in Greece.
In a significant diplomatic breakthrough, the ministers also reached a consensus on finalising a migration cooperation agreement that had remained pending for the past two years, paving the way for formalised, long-term collaboration.
To ensure sustained dialogue and implementation, both parties agreed to establish a dedicated Joint Working Group on migration.
Minister Plevris commended Pakistan’s ongoing crackdown on human smuggling networks, highlighting the effectiveness of recent measures taken by Pakistani authorities.
In response, Minister Naqvi welcomed Greece’s readiness to support capacity-building initiatives for Pakistan’s law enforcement, including professional training and technology-driven operations to better secure borders.
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Reiterating Pakistan’s zero-tolerance policy toward illegal immigration and human smuggling, Minister Naqvi stated that expanding avenues for legal migration is a key demand of the time and a shared international responsibility.
The Greek minister affirmed his country’s willingness to deepen engagement with Pakistan to advance these legal migration opportunities.
This meeting is part of Interior Minister Naqvi’s broader visit to Rome, where he is engaging with counterparts from Italy, Greece, and Spain to discuss regional strategies against illegal migration and explore expanded legal mobility options for skilled Pakistani workers.
