Iranian ambassador to Pakistan Mehdi Hoonardoost has said his country is ready to become part of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
He said Iran is a time tested friend of Pakistan and the country has neither allowed its soil to be used against Pakistan in the past nor will it do so in the future. All media reports on the use of Iranian territory against Pakistan are false and baseless, he added.
“Iranian president’s visit to Pakistan was a step in the right direction. We were shocked at media reports circulating on the eve of the president’s visit alleging that Iranian soil is used against Pakistan. Iran considers defence and security of Pakistan as its own defence and security and no one can create misunderstanding between the two countries.” he remarked.
Iran and Pakistan have common interests and both countries are tied into the bond of brotherhood and friendly ties, however, the volume of trade between the two countries is not proportionate to the level of friendship, the envoy said.
He went on to say that Pakistan is blessed with rich natural resources and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has rightly said that trade volume would be taken to 5 billion dollars.
While responding to a question, he said that the Iranian president’s consultations and talks with the top leadership of Pakistan were fruitful, adding that the two countries signed key agreements during President Rouhani’s visit to Pakistan. The leaderships of both countries have agreed that bilateral cooperation will be bolstered, he added.
He said his country supports Pakistan’s role in bringing durable peace in Afghanistan. If there is peace and stability in Afghanistan then there will be peace and stability in both Pakistan and Iran, he added.
In response to another question, he said that terrorism is an international issue and it should be resolved by collective efforts of the international community, adding that most countries in the world are the victims of terrorism. Iran and Pakistan are cooperating with each other in efforts against the menace of terrorism.
He underlined that Iran and Pakistan are working on different mega projects and Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project is also among these projects. 5 years economic plan has been worked out. Iran is ready to extend help to Pakistan in the energy sector, he added.
