ISLAMABAD: Iranian President Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian will arrive in Pakistan today, Saturday, on a two-day state visit aimed at strengthening bilateral relations, the Pakistani foreign office said.

Pakistan and Iran enjoy close ties and have signed several pacts in trade, energy and security in recent years. However, the two countries have also been at odds over instability along their shared porous border but have always been quick in moving to ease tensions each time.

In May, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi visited Pakistan at a time of heightened tensions between Pakistan and India over an attack in the disputed Kashmir region. His visit was followed by another by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to Iran, where he had met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

This is Pezeshkian’s first official visit to Pakistan as the Iranian president, according to the Pakistani foreign office. He will be accompanied by a high-level delegation, including FM Araghchi, senior ministers and other high-ranking officials.

“During his stay, President Pezeshkian will meet with the President of Pakistan, H.E. Asif Ali Zardari, and hold delegation-level talks with Prime Minister of Pakistan, H.E. Shehbaz Sharif,” the foreign office said on Friday.

Tensions surged between Pakistan and Iran in January last year when both countries exchanged rare, tit-for-tat airstrikes on what they said were militant hideouts on each other’s soil.

Late Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi had later traveled to Pakistan on a three-day visit in April to de-escalate tensions and strengthen bilateral relations. The two sides had also signed memorandums of understanding in the fields of trade, science technology, agriculture, health, culture, and judicial matters.

The bilateral ties initially witnessed a thaw during FM Araghchi’s visit to Pakistan this year and further warmed up after Islamabad voiced its support of Tehran during the 12-day Israel-Iran war in June, which began after Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.

Pakistan remained engaged in talks with regional partners like Saudi Arabia, Iran, China and Qatar to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East after Iran conducted retaliatory strikes on Israel and a US base in Qatar, raising fears the conflict could draw in other regional states.

“The visit [by Iranian president] is expected to further strengthen the brotherly relations between Pakistan and Iran,” the Pakistani foreign office said.