AhlulBayt News Agency - Former Pakistani Prime Minister Raja Parviz Ashraf highlighted the need to revitalize and broaden relations with Iran, specially in trade, adding that the two neighbors see no obstacle to this end, Iran's Fars News reported.
"Given the removal of sanctions against Iran, we can expand our trade relations with the country but Tehran should decrease the tariffs on Pakistani goods and facilitate economic ties," Ashraf said on Tuesday.
Stressing that Iran attaches great importance to its relations with Pakistan, he said, "After implementation of the nuclear deal (between Iran and the world powers), there is no problem for mutual cooperation between Pakistan and Iran in energy, trade, banking, technology and other sectors."
Ashraf referred to Islamabad's relations with Riyadh (which has recently cut ties with Tehran), and said, "Relations with Iran is as important as our ties with Saudi Arabia."
Iran and Pakistan have exchanged delegations on a regular basis and the two neighbors are keen to expedite expansion of bilateral ties.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Java Zarif and his Pakistani counterpart Sartaj Aziz in a meeting in New York in October had called for furthering mutual cooperation on export of gas and electricity.
Zarif and Aziz discussed ways to further boost Iran's export of gas and electricity to Pakistan after the implementation of the nuclear agreement between Tehran and the six world powers (the US, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany) in Vienna on July 14.
The Iranian and Pakistani foreign ministers also called for the further expansion of bilateral ties in other economic areas.
The two sides also agreed to increase the number of visit exchanges by the two countries' officials.
Also Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited Iran in January to mediate between Tehran and Riyadh to resume friendly ties but he couldn’t help defuse tensions with Iran arguing that it all depends on Riyadh, and that means changing course.
"Pakistan is our neighbor and our friend. We have deep-seated relations and they showed interest in playing a role in resolving the problem, and we welcomed the gesture," Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hossein Jaberi Ansari said in January.
Noting that one single trip cannot end up in the resumption of ties between Tehran and Riyadh, he said, "The good-will efforts made by friendly and brotherly states such as Pakistan, and Mr. Nawaz Sharif in particular, may succeed if the party which has placed crisis-escalation policy on its agenda takes up to alter its policy.”
/129
