Pakistan, Iran 'mutually agree' to restore ties by reinstating ambassadors

Pakistan and Iran have “mutually agreed” to restore diplomatic ties by reinstating their ambassadors in each other’s countries, Pakistan Foreign Office (FO) announced on Monday. This decision comes after a recent escalation in tensions, marked by tit-for-tat attacks on each other’s territories. Additionally, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian is scheduled to visit Pakistan on 29 January, following an invitation extended by Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani. The recent strain between Islamabad and Tehran stemmed from Pakistan’s execution of “precision military strikes” on alleged “terrorist hideouts” in Iran’s Siestan-Balochistan province, resulting in nine casualties. The attack was perceived as a response to Iranian missile and drone strikes targeting two bases of the Sunni Baloch militant group Jaish al-Adl in Pakistan’s Balochistan province the previous week. “Following the telephone conversation between the foreign ministers of Pakistan and the Islamic Republic of Iran, it has been mutually agreed that ambassadors of both countries may return to their respective posts by January 26, 2024,” the statement read. Information Minister Murtaza Solangi said Jilani deserves all the credit for his visionary engagement and managing possibly one of the fastest de-escalations of the diplomatic history. The development comes amid the reported visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Sun Weidong to Pakistan on a mediation mission. China on Monday said it is maintaining close contacts with Pakistan and Iran to bridge their differences after the two nations conducted airstrikes against each other last week. China on Thursday last offered to play a constructive role to ease tension between Islamabad and Tehran after relations between Iran and Pakistan nose-dived following the strikes. The attacks have put China in a piquant situation as Pakistan is an all-weather ally, while Iran is warming up to Beijing in recent years enabling Beijing to expand its influence in the West Asia region. With inputs from agencies