President Rouhani met PM Nawaz, army chief Gen Raheel Sharif, and President Mamnoon Hussain during the course of his visit, discussing geopolitical cooperation, mutual economic growth, cooperation in cultural fields, enhancing border security, countering terrorism and the situation in Afghanistan.
Following his meeting with Nawaz Sharif, President Rouhani told reporters that Pakistan and Iran discussed the existing state of mutual relations and mulled over enhancing economic interaction. “We talked about issues related to energy, gas and export of electricity,” he said, adding that Iran wanted to explore the possibility of connecting Gwadar and Chabahar ports. “Pakistan’s security is our security and Iran’s security is Pakistan’s security,” he said.
“We should go even further and link the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects, which might facilitate the export of the Iranian gas to China through Pakistan and make Pakistan the hub of the regional trade and energy corridors,” suggests Hassan Javid, former ambassador and president of the Lahore Council of World Affairs.
New Delhi is presenting Chabahar as an alternative to Gwadar
Javid believes that coordinating Pakistan’s Afghan policy with Iran is essential for peace in Afghanistan. “Considering the long border that Iran has with Afghanistan and its deep historical and cultural links with the latter,” he says. “Coordination over Afghanistan between Islamabad and Tehran is an indispensable condition for the success of the Afghan peace process. Trilateral talks among Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan, therefore, must be a regular feature.”
President Rouhani’s visit to Pakistan comes as Islamabad joins Saudi Arabia in a 34-nation Islamic alliance against terrorism. Iran isn’t a part of that coalition, and Tehran’s ties with Riyadh have been deteriorating following the execution of prominent Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr in Saudi Arabia in January. The Saudi-Iran feud prompted PM Nawaz Sharif and General Raheel Sharif’s visits to Riyadh and Tehran to mediate between the two countries.
Former foreign minister Khurshid Kasuri says Pakistan must play the reconciliatory role between the two countries. “While military fighting terrorism is important, Pakistan must make sure that it is not a part of any sectarian alliances. That is what we ensured when I was the foreign minister,” he says. The former foreign minister also highlighted the importance of the Iran-Pakistan pipeline.
“The PPP government that followed our tenure failed to capitalize on the groundwork that we had laid,” he says. “The agreement was passed just before the general elections in 2013 to ensure that the current government deals with the project. And considering Pakistan’s energy needs, the government must import gas from all sources – including Qatar, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and of course Iran.”
On Saturday President Rouhani met General Raheel Sharif to discuss security related issues. Following the meeting, army’s spokesman Lt Gen Asim Bajwa said that in addition to other matters, the recently captured ‘Indian spy’ was also discussed with the Iranian president. “There is one concern that RAW is involved in Pakistan, especially in Balochistan, and sometimes it also uses the soil of our brother country Iran,” read the text of meeting shared by the director general of Inter-Services Public Relations.
A couple of hours after the announcement, President Rouhani denied discussing RAW’s involvement in Balochistan with the Pakistani army chief. “Whenever Iran comes close to Pakistan, such rumours are spread,” a statement issued by the president read.
On March 29, Lt Gen Asim Bajwa and Information Minister Pervez Rasheed released a confession video of Indian navy officer Kulbhushan Yadav believed to be a RAW spy, in a press conference. In the video, Yadav says he had been posted in Balochistan to flare up Baloch insurgencies and is connected with senior RAW officials and Indian ministers.
Former Ambassador to Turkmenistan Tariq Osman Haider says India is eying the Chabahar sea route through Iran. “Pakistan’s 200km Export Processing Zone (EPZ) comes in between India accessing Central Asian natural gas through the sea route,” he says, adding that the Chabahar port would allow India to access the region for trade via Iran.
A security official wishing anonymity confirmed that while the RAW spy was discussed with President Rouhani, he wasn’t too keen on the topic. “It is well known that Indians want more control over Chabahar,” the official says. “Not only would it give them access to the Persian Gulf, the Indians would then be camped right next to the Balochistan border. New Delhi is presenting Chabahar as an alternative to Gwadar for world powers, including China.”
General Bajwa says Indian involvement near the Pakistan-Iran border would be raised at global platforms. “This issue must be raised by the government on every forum including global and regional forums.”
Information Minister Pervez Rasheed says the matter will be raised with India very soon.