Iran, Pakistan seek to patch up ties with pledge to boost trade

Iran and Pakistan took steps to repair relations after deadly military strikes by the two Asian neighbors early this year, with both countries signing multiple agreements on security and economic cooperation during a high-profile visit by President Ebrahim Raisi.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Raisi oversaw the signing of eight agreements in Islamabad including the setting up of a joint special economic zone, state-owned Associated Press of Pakistan said in a statement on Monday. The two leaders also agreed in principle to ban terrorist organizations operating on each other’s soil and combat terrorism, Pakistan’s Interior Ministry said in a statement.

Raisi is the first Iranian president to visit Islamabad in eight years. 

The move comes after Tehran conducted a missile strike on a militant group in Pakistan that was followed by Pakistan carrying out targeted strikes against, what it said, militant hideouts in Iran. Both sides had then agreed to ease tensions after the tit-for-tat strikes.

“Iran must be seeking to mend its ties with Pakistan, which had soured after January’s border tensions,” said Shaista Tabassum, a professor at the University of Karachi. 

Pakistan and Iran need to boost bilateral trade to about $10 billion in the next three to four years, Raisi said at a joint news conference on Monday.

Pakistan is also planning to revive a project to construct a gas pipeline from Iran that has been delayed for decades due to the risk of possible sanctions from the US. 

Joe Biden’s administration said it will uphold all sanctions related to Iran, according to Assistant Secretary of State Donald Lu last month in a congressional hearing when asked about the pipeline. Pakistan plans to request a waiver for the project. There was no mention about the pipeline during Raisi’s trip. 

“The US will certainly not like Pakistan and Iran to come closer,” said Tabassum.