ISLAMABAD: The United States warned on Wednesday countries doing business with Iran faced the “potential risk of sanctions,” as President Ebrahim Raisi concluded a three-day visit to Pakistan where his government signed eight memoranda of understanding (MoUs) for cooperation in different fields and to boost trade to $10 billion.

The Iranian president arrived in Islamabad on Monday as the two Muslim neighbors sought to mend ties after unprecedented tit-for-tat military strikes earlier this year. The visit also took place as tensions continued to remain high in the Middle East after Iran launched airstrikes on Israel a week ago and Israel retaliated with its own attack on Friday.

During his stay in Pakistan, Raisi held several official meetings in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi to discuss issues related to trade, connectivity, energy and people-to-people contacts.

Asked about his engagements in Pakistan and signing of MoUs, US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel cautioned against possible sanctions in a brief response.

“Just let me say broadly, we advise anyone considering business deals with Iran to be aware of the potential risk of sanctions,” he said. “But ultimately, the Government of Pakistan can speak to their own foreign policy pursuits.”

He was also asked about the US administration’s decision to announce sanctions against three Chinese and one Belarus-based entity supplying missile components to Pakistan last week.

“The sanctions were made because these were entities that were proliferators of weapons of mass destruction and the means of their delivery,” Patel said. “These were entities based in the PRC [Peoples Republic of China], in Belarus, and that we have witnessed to have supplied equipment and other applicable items to Pakistan’s ballistic missile program.”

“We’re going to continue to disrupt and take actions against proliferation networks and concerning weapons of mass destruction procurement activities wherever they may occur,” he added.

ISLAMABAD: Three militants were killed and another was injured in a shootout with security forces in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, the Pakistani military said on Tuesday.

The shootout took place during an intelligence-based operation in the Pishin district of Balochistan, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing.

The militants were killed after intense exchange of fire during the conduct of operation.

“One terrorist was apprehended in injured condition, who has been identified as an Afghan national,” the ISPR said in a statement.

“A huge cache of arms, ammunition and explosives was also recovered during the operation.”

Balochistan, which borders Afghanistan, is the site of a long-running insurgency by separatists and religiously motivated militants, who have recently carried out a number of attacks in the region.

Gunmen this month killed nine people, who hailed from the eastern Punjab province, after abducting them from a bus on a highway near the Noshki district. The outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the attack.

Although the government says it has quelled militancy, violence by various groups has persisted in the region.

Last year, Islamabad also set a November deadline for all undocumented migrants, mostly Afghans, to leave or face arrest, forcing more than 500,000 Afghans to flee Pakistan.

Pakistan defended the crackdown by pointing to security concerns and is expected to begin a renewed push to deport more Afghan nationals in the coming weeks, according to officials.