Pakistan and Iran sign 6 MoUs during the visit of first Iranian head of state to neighbouring Pakistan in the last 14 years.
Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani have vowed to boost cooperation on regional security and trade during talks in Islamabad, the first visit by an Iranian head of state in 14 years.
Pakistan and Iran reaffirmed their resolve to enhance the level of bilateral cooperation in diverse fields, including trade, economy and energy, Sharif and Rouhani told reporters after their wide-ranging talks on Friday.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has arrived in Pakistan on his first landmark visit since the implementation of a nuclear agreement between Tehran and the P5+1 group of six countries.
In a statement, Islamabad said that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani – who arrived on a two-day state visit to Pakistan – met with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and held talks on matters of mutual interest. “Our trade and economic ties have suffered due to sanctions. We have agreed to strengthen our bilateral ties in diverse areas of trade, economy and energy,” the statement quoted Nawaz Sharif as saying.
After the talks, Nawaz and Rouhani witnessed the signing of six agreements related to trade and economy including a “Five Year Strategic Trade Cooperation Plan”. The prime minister said that both the countries also decided to open two additional crossing points along their border to encourage trade.
Pakistan and Iran inked MoUs for cooperation and information exchange between the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and the Central Insurance of Iran. Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and Iran’s Interior Minister and Head of Joint Economic Commission Abdul Reza Rahmani Fazli signed the MoU. The two neighbours inked another MoU for cooperation on health research, training, medicine and medical technology.
Pakistan and Iran also signed an MoU on cooperation between the Institute for Political and International Studies of Iran and Karachi Council on Foreign Relations (KCFR) of Pakistan.
The two countries signed MoUs for cooperation between Pakistan’s Foreign Service Academy and Iran’s School of International Relations. Adviser to PM on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif represented their countries.
The Iranian president said that the two sides also needed to enhance cultural relations as well as regional cooperation. He stressed for political solutions to regional problems and conflicts.
Pakistan, Iran to fight terrorism jointly through cooperation
Rouhani said he and Sharif had agreed on Friday to fight “extremist and terrorist groups” in their countries’ shared border, as the two leaders announced the opening of two new crossing points to encourage trade long hampered by sanctions.
“We place emphasis on the need for cooperation between our two countries, on regional security,” Rouhani said, adding that issues related to energy, gas the export of electricity were also discussed.
Pakistan, Iran to open two new border crossings
he two sides decided during the meeting about opening new border crossings, besides the possibilities of cooperation between Gwadar and Chabahar ports, which are seen as rivals, export of electricity from Iran to Pakistan, and signing of trade agreements.
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