Pakistan has achieved major gains in the fight against terrorism, but international cooperation is needed to eliminate the menace across the world, Pakistan's permanent representative to the United Nations (UN) Dr. Maleeha Lodhi said on Saturday.

Speaking at the UN general assembly conference of heads of counter-terrorism agencies, the Pakistani envoy said the gains against terrorism have come at a high human and financial cost but the country’s resolve to fight against the scourge has not diminished.

The largest anti-terrorism operation was carried out by Pakistan by deploying over 200,000 of its forces, she asserted, adding that no country can fight the menace of terrorism alone and regional and international cooperation was important.

“Terrorism and extremism remain among today’s biggest security challenges, feeding off instability in many parts of the world and also fueling it,” Lodhi said, adding that the threats posed by terrorist groups traverse borders, presenting a global security challenge that no country can confront on its own.

She further said that easy access to information technology has helped transnational terrorist organisations to develop close connections. “Acting as borderless force terrorist groups freely operate in the cyber domain and disseminate their toxic message to promote online recruitment, raise funds and even plan and launch attacks,” she said.