Islamabad, Jul 6 (IANS): Pakistan and the US have decided to strengthen cooperation in law enforcement and counter-terrorism issues.

Rehman Malik, Pakistan's interior minister, and William Brownfield, US assistant secretary for the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, met here Tuesday for the fourth ministerial level Pakistan-US Strategic Dialogue on Law Enforcement and Counter-terrorism, Associated Press of Pakistan reported.

"The meeting reaffirmed the commitment of both governments to continue the important work of the Pakistan-US Strategic Dialogue and to strengthen both governments' cooperation on law enforcement and counter-terrorism issues," a joint statement said.

"The death of over 500 Pakistani civilians from IEDs since the beginning of the calendar year 2011 called for the need for urgent action to combat the threat. Noting that suicide bombings and IED attacks have become an unacceptable and too frequent occurrence in Pakistan, both governments pledged to improve cooperation on stopping these vicious cowardly attacks by the enemies of humanity," it added.

The US lauded Pakistan's commitment to fight extremists. It agreed to assist Pakistan to ensure that its law enforcement officers are adequately equipped to combat the threat posed by terrorists and ensure the protection of the people of Pakistan, the statement said.