Iran | Pakistan

Pakistan has approved a revised barter trade framework to facilitate smoother trade with Afghanistan, Iran, and Russia, expanding the scope of goods exchange under more flexible terms.

Iran said on Saturday that it was no longer bound by restrictions on its nuclear programme as a landmark 10-year deal between it and world powers expired, though Tehran reiterated its “commitment to diplomacy”. The 2015 deal — signed in Vienna by Iran, China, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and the United States — saw the lifting of international sanctions against the Islamic Republic in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear programme. But the pact had already been in tatters after Washington unilaterally withdrew during President Donald Trump’s first term, with Iran later pulling back from its commitments. The reimposition last month of UN sanctions at the urging of three of the deal’s European signatories rendered the accord effectively moot. From now on, “all of the provisions (of the deal), including the restrictions on the Iranian nuclear programme and the related mechanisms are considered terminated”, Iran’s foreign ministry said in a statement on the day of the pact’s expiration. “Iran firmly expre...

Iran’s foreign ministry on Tuesday criticised US President Donald Trump’s call for dialogue, accusing Washington of “hostile and criminal behaviour” after his remarks to Israel’s parliament about being ready to strike a deal with Tehran. The ministry said in a statement that Trump’s call for peace is in conflict with his actions towards Iran. “Mr Trump can either be a President of Peace or a President of War, but he cannot be both at the same time,” Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a separate comment on X on Tuesday. In June, the US joined Israel in striking Iranian nuclear facilities after five rounds of indirect nuclear talks with Tehran that stalled over issues like domestic nuclear enrichment. The foreign minister reiterated his position that Tehran has always been open to “respectful and mutually beneficial diplomatic engagement”. US demands that Tehran stop enriching uranium were rejected earlier this year as “excessive and outrageous” by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who said Teh...

Iran Air has announced the launch of its flight operations to Pakistan, beginning with a weekly direct flight between Mashhad and Lahore starting October 29, marking the resumption of air connectivity between the two cities.

Iran on Tuesday denounced “baseless claims” made by United States President Donald Trump, calling Washington “the largest sponsor of terrorism”. Addressing Israel’s Knesset on Monday ahead of joining an international peace summit in Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh, Trump said that Iran wants to reach a peace deal with the US “even if they said, ‘We don’t want to make a deal,’”. In a statement carried by the state news agency IRNA, the foreign ministry said: “The US, as the world’s largest generator of terrorism and supporter of the terrorist and genocidal Zionist (Israeli) regime, has no moral authority to level accusations against others.” “The repetition of false claims regarding Iran’s peaceful nuclear programme can in no way justify the joint crimes of the US and the Zionist regime” in violating Iran’s soil, the ministry said. Israel launched a surprise attack on Tehran on June 13, targeting military, nuclear, and civilian sites as well as senior military commanders and nuclear scientists. Tehran launched retalia...

ISLAMABAD - Following the deadly cross-border clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan, regional powers including Iran, Saudi Arabia and Qatar yesterday urged both Islamabad and Kabul to exercise restraint and resolve their escalating border dispute through dialogue.

ISLAMABAD - Ambassador of Iran to Pakistan, H.

The United Nations has reinstated an arms embargo and other sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme following a process triggered by European powers that Tehran has warned will be met with a harsh response. Britain, France and Germany initiated the return of sanctions on Iran at the UN Security Council over accusations it had violated a 2015 deal that aimed to stop it from developing a nuclear bomb. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons. The end of the decade-long nuclear deal originally agreed by Iran, Britain, Germany, France, the United States, Russia and China is likely to exacerbate tensions in the Middle East, just months after Israel and the US bombed Iranian nuclear sites. UN sanctions imposed by the Security Council in resolutions adopted between 2006 and 2010 were reinstated at 8pm EDT on Saturday. Attempts to delay the return of all sanctions on Iran failed on the sidelines of the annual gathering of world leaders at the UN this week. “We urge Iran and all states to abide fully by these resoluti...

Afghanistan’s Taliban government has welcomed the recent stance by Russia, China, Iran and Pakistan against the establishment of foreign military bases in and around Afghanistan. This position was affirmed in a joint statement released after foreign ministers from the four countries met on the sidelines of the 80th United Nations General Assembly in New York. They emphasised respect for Afghanistan’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity and said re-establishment of foreign military bases is “not conducive to regional peace and security.” According to Hamdullah Fitrat, deputy spokesperson for the Taliban government, his country not only welcomed the stance of the four countries but said that “Afghanistan will not allow its territory to be used against other countries, nor permit armed groups to operate from its soil.” While the joint statement did not refer to any specific country seeking bases in Afghanistan, it follows one by US President Donald Trump where he said Washington was trying to get...

Iran and Russia signed a $25 billion deal to build nuclear power plants in the Islamic republic, Iranian state media reported on Friday, just hours ahead of the likely return of sweeping UN sanctions on Iran. “A deal for the construction of four nuclear power plants with a value of $25 billion in Sirik, Hormozgan was signed between the Iran Hormoz company and Rosatom,” state television said. Iran has just one operational nuclear power plant in Bushehr in the south, with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts — just a fraction of the country’s energy needs. According to state news agency IRNA, each plant will have a capacity of 1,255 megawatts, though no details were provided on the timeline. The move comes as so-called snapback sanctions triggered by the European parties to a landmark 2015 nuclear deal with Iran are set to return by the end of Saturday. Britain, France and Germany triggered the sanctions last month, accusing of Iran of failing to adhere to its commitments under the agreement. At a Security Council ses...

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday welcomed the landmark mutual defence deal struck between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia as the beginning of a “comprehensive regional security system”. Pakis­tan and Saudi Arabia entered into a landmark mutual defence agreement, under which any aggression against one state will be considered an attack on both. The pact was signed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman at the Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh last week. The timing of the accord, coming on the heels of an Arab summit that signalled a shift towards collective security — in the wake of Israel’s attack on Qatar — hints that it is rooted in current world affairs and reflects the defence concerns of both countries. It also comes just months after a deadly India-Pakistan conflict in May, as well as the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June. The Iranian president praised the defence deal while addressing the General Debate of the 80th Session of the United Nations General ...

Iran insists diplomacy is the only way to resolve a decades-long nuclear dispute with the West, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi told Iranian state TV on Monday, adding it was time for the West to choose “cooperation or confrontation” amid looming sanctions. Britain, France and Germany, known as the E3, launched a 30-day process on August 28 to reimpose United Nations sanctions, accusing Tehran of failing to abide by a 2015 deal with world powers aimed at preventing it from developing a nuclear weapon. Araqchi said he will meet with his European counterparts and the head of the UN nuclear watchdog, Rafael Grossi, in New York this week on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly to discuss Iran’s nuclear programme. Two European diplomats told Reuters the meeting will be on Tuesday. “They have tested Iran repeatedly and know we do not respond to the language of pressure and threat,” Araqchi said. “I hope we can find a diplomatic solution in the coming days, otherwise, Tehran will take appropriate measures.” The E...

Iran’s top security body said on Saturday that action by Britain, France and Germany to reimpose United Nations sanctions will “effectively suspend” its cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog. “Despite the foreign ministry’s cooperation with the [International Atomic Energy] Agency and the presentation of plans to resolve the issue, the actions of European countries will effectively suspend the path of cooperation with the agency,” the Supreme National Security Council said in a televised statement. Britain, France and Germany were among the parties to a 2015 deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) that gave Iran relief from UN sanctions in return for UN-monitored restrictions on its nuclear activities. The three governments say Iran has reneged on its commitments under the deal which has been effectively moribund since Washington pulled out in 2018 during President Donald Trump’s first term. The UN Security Council voted on Friday, after European pressure, to reimpose the UN sanctions ...

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that he put forward a “fair and balanced” nuclear proposal to European powers to prevent the return of United Nations sanctions on the Islamic republic. Iran is “introducing a creative, fair, and balanced proposal which addresses genuine concerns and is mutually beneficial,” Araghchi said on X. He added that the proposal was made on Thursday to Britain, France and Germany — known collectively as the E3 — as well as the European Union. “Turning this idea into action can be prompt and resolve the respective bottom lines to avert a crisis,” Araghchi said, arguing that “Iran cannot be the sole responsible actor”. The comments were made as the United Nations Security Council was set to vote on Friday on reimposing biting economic sanctions on Tehran over its contested nuclear programme. Diplomatic sources expect that Iran does not have the nine votes needed to maintain the status quo and prevent the punitive measures from being reimposed by the end of the month...

The United States has issued a fresh round Iran-related sanctions targeting individuals and entities that Washington says finance Tehran’s military, including some in Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates, the US Treasury Department said on Tuesday. Those targeted have helped coordinate funds transfers, including from the sale of Iranian oil, that benefit Iran’s military force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC)- Quds Force and its Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL), the Treasury said. “Iranian ‘shadow banking’ networks like these — run by trusted illicit financial facilitators — abuse the international financial system, and evade sanctions by laundering money through overseas front companies and cryptocurrency,” it said in a statement. US sanctions generally prohibit American individuals and companies from engaging in any business transactions with those targeted. The US had issued Iran-related sanctions in June this year as well, taking aim at the procurement of machinery for ...

Federal Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan reached Tehran on Sunday for a three-day official visit to boost economic relations between Pakistan and Iran, according to a press release from the commerce ministry. Pakistan and Iran share close ties and have signed multiple agreements across sectors such as energy and trade. According to the press release, Khan is expected to lead the Pakistan-Iran Joint Economic Commission and Business Forum during his visit. “He was received at Imam Khomeini International Airport by Mr Amin Tarfa’a, adviser to Iran’s Ministry of Roads and Urban Development,” the press release read. “During the visit, [Khan] will lead the 22nd Session of the Pakistan–Iran Joint Economic Commission and co-chair the Pakistan–Iran Joint Business Forum. He is also scheduled to hold meetings with key Iranian ministers and senior officials to strengthen bilateral trade and investment cooperation.” Khan’s visit aims to give fresh momentum to economic and commercial ties between the two nations through th...

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Thursday that Tehran would respond to a decision by France, Britain and Germany to trigger a mechanism reimposing UN sanctions under a moribund 2015 nuclear deal. “The Islamic Republic of Iran will respond appropriately to this illegal and unjustified action by the three European countries, in order to protect and guarantee its national rights and interests,” Araghchi told his French, British and German counterparts in a phone call, according to a statement from his ministry. He called on the three countries to “appropriately correct this wrong decision in the coming days”. While Araghchi did not specify what retaliatory measures Iran might take, Tehran has previously warned that such a move could lead to the exclusion of the European powers from any future negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme. In a statement, the Iranian foreign ministry said: “This decision by the three European countries will seriously undermine the ongoing process of interaction and coope...

Pakistan and Iran have reaffirmed their commitment to eliminating terrorism and boosting security cooperation along their common border, following a telephonic conversation between Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and Iranian Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi.

COAS, Iran counterpart vow border security

Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and his Iranian counterpart, Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi, affirmed their readiness on Tuesday to eradicate terrorism for securing the borders of both countries. Pakistan and Iran, earlier this month, agreed that peace and prosperity in their border regions hinged on effectively combatting terrorism. The nearly 900-kilometre border between the two countries has long faced security threats from proscribed groups, such as Jaish al-Adl and the Balochistan Liberation Army. Persistent issues, including terrorism, smuggling, and mutual accusations of harbouring militants, have periodically strained ties. A statement issued by the Iranian embassy said Field Marshal Munir and Gen Mousavi, the chief of staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, held a telephonic conversation today. “The two sides are ready to eradicate terrorism to secure common borderlines,” it read. A statement carried by Iranian state news agency IRNA said Gen Mousavi mentioned that Iran was prepared to erad...