ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Iran opened the 12th round of bilateral political consultations in Tehran on Saturday to discuss various dimensions of their relations and explore the possibility of improving trade, transport and connectivity, said the foreign office in a social media post.
The two countries share religious, linguistic and cultural affinities and have increased their official engagements in recent years. Iran was the first state that recognized Pakistan after independence, while Pakistan was also quick to accept the new dispensation in Tehran after the 1979 revolution.
Pakistan’s foreign office announced the beginning of the consultations in a Twitter post, calling the discussions between the two sides “fruitful.”
“[Foreign Secretary Asad Majeed Khan] held fruitful & wide-ranging discussions with Deputy [Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani] during [Pakistan-Iran] 12th Bilateral Consultations,” it said on Twitter. “The two sides [discussed] entire spectrum of relations & agreed to deepen cooperation in trade, energy, transport connectivity, cultural exchanges & educational linkages.”
Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch informed during her weekly press briefing on Thursday that the “Bilateral Political Consultations … will review all aspects of Pakistan-Iran bilateral relations covering political, economic, trade, investment, border security, education, climate change, and cultural domains.”
“The two sides will discuss progress on institutional frameworks to promote ongoing cooperation in all areas of mutual interest,” she added.
The Pakistani foreign secretary also announced his arrival in Tehran on Twitter, saying he was “delighted to see how this great city has changed for better over the years since my first visit in 2004.”
“Looking forward to a productive round of consultations with my brother [Ali Bagheri Kani],” he added.
Khan is also scheduled to call on the Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and deliver a lecture at the Institute of Political and International Studies.
He will also hold meetings with the secretary-general of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) and the chairman of the Pakistan-Iran Parliamentary Friendship Group.
It may be recalled the last meeting of the Iran-Pakistan bilateral political consultations was held in Islamabad in October 2021.
