Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani will leave for Tehran today for a three-day visit during which he will meet the Iran’s leadership, including President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani and discuss regional issues. Gilani will visit Tehran, Gilan and Mushhid during his visit, aimed at strengthening transportation and communication links, cooperation in energy, economic and trade fields and preferential tariff arrangements.
Swift completion of the Pak-Iran gas pipeline project will also be discussed and the possibility to import 1000MW of electricity from Iran will be among other important subjects of discussion. Iran has already built its portion of the gas pipeline. The Pakistani part of the pipeline is expected to cost $1.65 billion, a little more than a fifth of the total cost of the whole project. The pipeline is expected to begin supplying gas to Pakistan by the mid of 2014.
Iran Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi had visited Pakistan this week to attend the Pak-Iran Joint Economic Commission and had also signed a number of Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) to take bilateral trade to $4.5 billion by 2014. The Pak-Iran Joint Economic Commission was also established to improve bilateral economic relations. Salehi also held meetings with President Asif Ali Zardari, the prime minister and Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, in addition to a detailed discussion with Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Sheikh.
