TheCable

President Muhammadu Buhari says even the opposition party recognises that security has improved in the north-east.

Garba Shehu, spokesman of the president, quoted Buhari as saying this on Saturday at a bilateral meeting with Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khakan Abbasi.

The meeting held on the sideline of the ninth D-8 summit in Istanbul, Turkey.

Although Buhari did not state the opposition party he was referring to, he said the Boko Haram insurgents have been moved “out from their strongholds in the north-east.

“We have moved them out from their strongholds in the north-east, we have denied them space and even their attacks on soft targets are becoming less often.

“Even the opposition (party) recognises that there is a considerable improvement of security in the north-east.”

The president also said the Nigeria-Pakistan joint commission would be revamped as a veritable platform to strengthen economic and trade relations between both countries.

Buhari expressed satisfaction at the level of defence and military cooperation between both countries and agreed with the prime minister that there was still room to do more.

“Nigeria-Pakistan cooperation is very historical. Military training has been very consistent and I am impressed with the efficiency of officers trained in Pakistan,” he said.

“But the performance of our countries in relation to trade and industrial cooperation had been very disappointing.”

On his part, Abbasi said Pakistan would continue to share experiences with Nigeria in the fight against terrorism towards developing effective strategies and results.

He also noted that both countries had similar prospects and challenges.