Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Pakistan Army Chief and Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir met Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni in Tehran on Monday and discussed bilateral ties and the latest regional developments. Munir, who is accompanied by Pakistan Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, is on the visit as part of Pakistan’s efforts to promote regional peace and stability, according to a statement by the Pakistan Army.
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The statement said the field marshal will focus on promoting efforts towards a peaceful, lasting and comprehensive resolution of the conflict in the Middle East. The visit comes at a time of heightened tensions, with Iran threatening a military response to US plans for sanctions, and ahead of Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi’s scheduled trip to Tehran on Tuesday for talks with Iranian officials.
Iranian media reported that Munir arrived in the Iranian capital for talks on regional peace and stability before meeting Momeni. Iran’s Fars news agency said he will also hold discussions with senior Iranian officials during the visit.
On Sunday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said the trip aims to strengthen bilateral cooperation and continue Pakistan’s efforts to promote peace and security in the region. Pakistan has been leading the push for peace and trying to revive its mediation efforts in the stalled US-Iran peace negotiations. In April, it helped arrange a ceasefire that led to an agreement to end the US-Iran conflict, but the process later faltered and has not been put back on track.
The conflict began when the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28, triggering Iranian retaliation, choking the Strait of Hormuz and causing a rise in petroleum prices. An interim peace agreement, which Pakistan signed as a guarantor, derailed last month as tensions escalated in West Asia and the US and Iran resumed military strikes. Pakistan’s efforts to revive the talks have so far failed to yield results.
Earlier this month, Naqvi held talks in Tehran with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. The key sticking point remains the Strait of Hormuz, where shipping has been disrupted by the war. In normal times, roughly a fifth of the world’s total energy supplies passed through the Gulf chokepoint. On Sunday, Pezeshkian defended the MoU as the best way for the country to move beyond what he described as a situation of “neither war nor peace”, while Iran’s Supreme National Security Council chief Mohsen Rezaei warned Tehran’s neighbours against joining the new US effort to hurt Iran’s economy. On August 20, US President Donald Trump said he would go for the “most crushing economic operation” against Iran if Tehran failed to strike a deal.
Munir’s Tehran visit is centred on talks with Iranian leaders on bilateral cooperation, regional peace and the stalled US-Iran process, as tensions remain high and the Strait of Hormuz stays at the centre of the crisis.
With PTI Inputs
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
