Islamabad, Sep 10 (Xinhua) Britain has emphasised the need for closer cooperation between Afghanistan and Pakistan to discourage terrorist activity along the 2,400-km-long porous border the two countries share.

British Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Kim Howells said he met the leaders and high-level government officials and got briefing on issues concerning peace and security when he visited Afghanistan and Pakistan, according to the report of local newspaper The Nation Sunday.

The minister dispelled the impression Pakistan is not doing enough to curb terror activities along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, asking international community to come and see how difficult it is to monitor movement along the long and porous border.

He said the border area between Pakistan's southwest Balochistan and Helmand province in Afghanistan is one of the remotest places of the world, mostly drug smugglers, terrorists and gangsters take refuge there.

They do not get caught easily and for that reason closer cooperation between Afghanistan and Pakistan is required, he said.

He rejected the notion it is only Talibans who are shooting at the Afghan soldiers and International Security Assistance Forces in Helmand province, which is closer to Balochistan.

There are also drug barons, warlords, smugglers and gangsters of all sorts who are attacking these forces.