Diplomats, politicians, educationists, entrepreneurs, and journalists gathered here on Friday night to observe the National Day of Iran on the eve of 38th anniversary of Iran’s Revolution.
Ambassador of Iran Mehdi Honardoost welcomed the guests at the gate while the hospitable staff of the Iranian Embassy put everyone at ease. Issues ranging from the upcoming ECO summit and the Syrian war to the Muslim ban and US sanctions on Iran were discussed at the event. The upcoming important huddle to be hosted by Russia and to be attended by China, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, and the Afghan Taliban also was dilated upon.
Though Minister for Commerce Engineer Khurram Dastgir was officially the chief guest, Qatari Ambassador Saqr bin Mubarak Al Mansouri stole the show after his recent appearance on a TV show to make a rare statement about the Panamgate case.
From diplomats to journalists, everyone wanted to say hello to the ambassador, perhaps with the hope to hear something about the role of Qatari government in the Panamagate case. However, it seemed that the ambassador might have gotten too much attention and was observed dodging a barrage of questions and interview requests.
Turkish Ambassador Sadik Babur Girgin was also prominent. Surrounded by diplomats and journalists, the ambassador spent quite some time answering queries about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and recent legislation passed by the Turkish parliament.
Abdullah Hamid Gul, chairman of the Tehreek Jawanan-e-Pakistan & Kashmir looked very busy too, as guests congratulated him on the launch of his organisation’s chapter in Indian-Occupied Kashmir.
Girls from the Iranian school in Islamabad sung the Iranian and Pakistani national anthems, and in what seemed to be a well-planned surprise, Ambassador Mehdi Honardoost made a speech in Urdu. The guests were amazed to see the envoy speaking fluent Urdu after having been in Pakistan for only a year.
In his speech, Khurram Dastagir said that bilateral trade between Pakistan was on an upward trajectory. He said that opening banking channels had been the biggest stumbling block in increasing bilateral trade, but that the impediment had been removed after the State Bank of Pakistan and Iran’s central bank signed an agreement for stable trade relation between the two countries.
He said Pakistan and Iran’s historical and cultural relations were converting into mutual trade partnerships.
Speaking on the occasion, Iran’s Ambassador to Pakistan Mehdi Hunardoost also acknowledged growing bilateral relations in different fields. He mentioned that development work on the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline is fast underway.
He said Pakistan and Iran have a long history of cordial ties and that recent high level visits between the two would further help improve their relations.