Iran envoy returns to Islamabad, Pakistan envoy returns to Tehran
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Iran and Pakistan's foreign ministries released a joint statement on January 22, indicating a thaw in the previously strained relations between the two neighbors.
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Police officers stand guard at the main entry gate of Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in Islamabad, Pakistan, Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024. (AP)
Tasnim news agency reported on Saturday that the Iranian ambassador to Islamabad Reza Amiri Moqadam has returned to his diplomatic mission on Friday.
The envoy told reporters that his mission has resumed with a message of "friendship and fraternity" between the two states.
This follows a quarrel between the two nations after Iran conducted an operation targeting terrorist groups inside Pakistan.
Pakistan reciprocated with airstrikes shortly after Iran's operation was concluded.
"The relations between Iran and Pakistan are age-old and historic. The two countries have always had close cooperation and convergence in the bilateral, regional, and international areas," the Iranian diplomat said, after receiving a welcome from the Pakistani Foreign Ministry's officials.
The ambassador added that in light of Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian's upcoming visit to Pakistan, high-level interactions between the two neighboring countries are ongoing.
"The promotion of economic and political cooperation between Iran and Pakistan could strengthen border security as well," he noted.
On another note, the Iranian President's Assistant for Political Affairs, Mohammad Jamshidi, indicated that the Iranian President, Ebrahim Raisi, stressed that "Pakistan's security is Iran's security."
Jamshidi's words came in the context of Pakistan's new ambassador to Tehran presenting his credentials to the Iranian president, expressing "his country's readiness to open a new chapter in the fraternal relationship between Pakistan and Iran."
Iran and Pakistan's foreign ministries released a joint statement on January 22, indicating a thaw in the previously strained relations between the two Muslim neighbors.
The Iranian foreign minister is set to visit Pakistan on January 29, accepting an invitation from Pakistan's caretaker Minister for Foreign Affairs, Jalil Abbas Jilani.
Read more: The Looming Threat of Nuclear War
Shamshad Ahmad Khan, the former Foreign Secretary of Pakistan, told MEHR news agency earlier this month that Jaish ul-Adl, whom Iran's IRGC carried out strikes against in Pakistan's Balochistan province, is a terrorist group with backing from the United States.
"Pakistan and Iran enjoy deep diplomatic ties, and the relations are not at a normal level," Ahmad Khan was quoted as saying, noting that the differences between the two countries are not fundamental but rather stem from strategic issues due to their geopolitical positions.
The latest tensions on the border between the two countries "have been pressured by the United States and Israeli regime," he added.
It is important to note that Pakistan and Iran are both nuclear states. Therefore, the risks associated with the outbreak of a war are likely to lead to a disastrous outcome.
