Raisi Holds Talks in Pakistan to Normalize Bilateral Ties

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has held talks with Pakistani leader Shebaz Sharif in Islamabad, in what experts call a “significant” visit aimed at mending ties after the neighbours traded deadly cross-border strikes earlier this year.
Prime Minister Sharif’s office on Monday said the pair had a “vibrant discussion” on advancing bilateral relations specifically in trade and communication and also “agreed on the necessity for joint efforts by both countries to combat terrorism”.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry also released photos of top diplomat Ishaq Dar meeting with Raisi, saying in a statement that the pair “discussed regional and global developments and affirmed commitment to peace and constructive dialogue”.
Before leaving Tehran, Raisi had said the “discussions with the government of Pakistan will be on the border issues between the two countries”.
The three-day visit follows tit-for-tat missile strikes in January in the region of Balochistan, which straddles the two nations’ porous border.
Tehran carried out the first strikes against an anti-Iran group inside Pakistan, with Islamabad retaliating by hitting “militant targets” inside Iran.
Both nations have previously accused each other of harbouring militants in the border region.