In a meeting with President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian lauded Pakistan’s constructive contribution to Iran-US dialogue and reaffirmed Tehran’s commitment to strengthening bilateral ties and regional peace.
President Pezeshkian landed in Islamabad earlier today on a day-long visit following Islamabad-mediated talks between Tehran and Washington in Switzerland.
The trip — Pezeshkian’s first foreign visit since the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28 — comes a day after Pakistan and Qatar announced that the opening round of high-level US-Iran talks in Burgenstock, Switzerland, had produced a 60-day roadmap towards a final agreement.
The Iranian president arrived on a special aircraft operated by Mirage Airlines, identified as Minab 168 — a symbolic tribute to the 168 children who were martyred in an attack on their school by the United States and Israel in Iran’s Minab city.
Given a red carpet welcome with a guard of honour, the Iranian president was welcomed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, President Asif Ali Zardari, and other top leadership, while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was also present.
This is Dr Pezeshkian’s second visit to Pakistan in his capacity as president of Iran.
During his meeting with President Zardari, Pezeshkian discussed bilateral relations, mainly regional peace and security, bilateral and regional connectivity, economic cooperation and other issues of mutual interest, the President House said in a statement.
The Iranian president was accompanied by Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi, Chief of the President’s Office Mohsen Haji Mirzaei, Minister of Interior Eskandar Momeni, Chief of Political Affairs of President’s Office Saeed Abbas Mousavi, and Iranian Ambassador to Pakistan Reza Amiri Moghaddam.
From the Pakistani side, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar and former foreign minister and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, State Minister for Interior Talal Chaudhry, Senate Chief Whip Senator Saleem Mandviwala and Dr Asim Hussain were present during the meeting.
President Zardari welcomed President Pezeshkian on his first state visit to Pakistan after the recent conflict and noted that the visit reflects the longstanding brotherly relations between the two countries and a desire to stay together in good and bad times.
He congratulated President Pezeshkian on the signing of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding and expressed the hope that the ongoing technical-level negotiations would culminate in permanent peace in the region.
The president reaffirmed Pakistan’s principled support for Iran’s peace, stability, national unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity.
He stated that Pakistan has consistently opposed one-sided initiatives and has supported dialogue and diplomacy as the means to achieve a durable and sustainable solution to regional and global challenges.
He also underscored Islamabad’s commitment to preserving the unity of the Muslim Ummah while maintaining strong fraternal relations with the countries of the Gulf region.
President Zardari once again expressed condolences on the martyrdom of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei and said that Pakistan would participate in his funeral.
Pezeshkian thanked Pakistan for its positive and constructive efforts in support of peace and dialogue and appreciated the support extended by Pakistan during recent challenging circumstances.
He said Iran attaches great importance to its relations with Pakistan and looks forward to further expanding cooperation in political, economic, security and regional matters.
President Zardari requested President Pezeshkian to convey his warm regards to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyed Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei.
