Iran and Pakistan have agreed to increase the level of their annual bilateral trade exchange to $10 billion. The move could create opportunities for China to expand its Belt and Road initiative and counter the maritime powers.
Iranian President Raisi personally visited Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, on April 22, 2024. In particular, Iranian President Raisi led a high-level delegation on a three-day trip, visiting cities such as Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi. During the stay, Raisi held meetings with the President, Prime Minister and senior military officials of Pakistan.
On Monday, April 22, President Raisi was officially welcomed by Pakistani Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad. Photo IRNA
The agenda of both sides was rich, covering many areas such as economic cooperation, counter-terrorism, regional peace and border security. Among these, the natural gas pipeline cooperation project attracted much attention and is expected to bring significant economic benefits to the two countries and further strengthen bilateral relations.
Diplomatic interactions between Iran and Pakistan are also a consequence of China-led reconciliation in the Middle East.
"Iran's close cooperation with Pakistan not only dampens Pakistani concerns about the potential threat posed by India, but could also enable the country to pursue a path of independent and autonomous development with greater confidence," Chinese experts say.
"This kind of cooperation is also crucial to the stability and development of triangular relations between China, Russia and Iran."
In the current international context of declining U.S. hegemony, cooperation between Iran and Pakistan undoubtedly represents a new diplomatic trend. As time goes on, this cooperation will not only continue to deepen, but also play an increasingly important role in the international arena and lead a new diplomatic trend.
Iran, Pakistan eye 5-fold growth in trade exchanges
Mehrdad Bazarpash, Iran's Minister of Roads and Urban Development during his recent trip to Islamabad as the head of the Joint Commission on Economic Cooperation, met with Pakistani officials and jointly opened a new chapter of trade development to reach the trade horizon of $10 billion, according to IRNA.
The agreements made during the past year led to an increase in trade between the two countries, with Pakistan acquiring the sixth place among Iran's export destinations with a share of 4.2 percent of the country's total exports last year, the report said.
According to the available statistics, Iran-Pakistan trade increased from $1.5 billion in 2022 to more than $2 billion last year, meaning a growth of 38 percent in terms of value and 23 percent in terms of volume between the two countries.
Increasing the volume of trade between the two neighbors was among the agenda of the visit of the President Ebrahim Raisi and the Minister of Roads and Urban Development to Pakistan and that culminated into signing of eight cooperation documents in various fields, with the two sides hoping to enhance bilateral trade exchanges to $10 billion.
For this purpose, both Iran and Pakistan in the meeting of the Joint Commission on Economic Cooperation agreed to increase the level of cooperation, especially in the field of transportation and infrastructure development, as one of the basic principles of trade and economic activity.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi considered the border of more than 900 kilometers between Iran and Pakistan to be a valuable opportunity for the development, prosperity and prosperity of the border areas, and said that the informal trade between the two countries should be converted into formal trade.
Iran and Pakistan signed 8 cooperation documents
Eight cooperation documents were signed by high-ranking officials from Iran and Pakistan in the presence of Iranian President Ayatollah Ebrahim Raisi and Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif.
The documents cover various areas, including security cooperation and judicial assistance agreements in civil and commercial matters between the two neighboring states.
"Establishment of free trade zones at common border crossings", "Cinema and media sector cooperation", "Animal health sector cooperation", "Security cooperation", "Cooperation in the cooperation and social welfare sector", "Cooperation in the standard sector" and "Cooperation in the legal sector and judicial assistance in civil and commercial affairs" were the most important documents of cooperation between the two countries, which were signed by the ministers of road and urban development, justice, culture and Islamic guidance, agricultural jihad and the heads of organizations of free and special economic and standard zones with Pakistani counterparts.
Opportunities for China
While Raisi's visit is perceived as an attempt to repair bilateral relations, Iran's diplomacy with Pakistan may actually present broader opportunities for China.
Not only could this move help strengthen Sino-Iranian and Pakistani-Chinese relations, but it could also facilitate the strategic alignment of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) with the Persian Gulf route, further expanding the reach of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
At the same time, it could also strengthen the formation of a quasi-land alliance to meet the challenge of Anglo-American maritime power. The optimized text highlights the potential strategic significance of this diplomacy and its positive implications for China.
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