A couple of days ago, Islamabad hosted Dr Masoud Pezeshkian, the honourable President of Iran, and his accompanying delegation. This was Dr Pezeshkian’s first official visit to Pakistan. In April 2024, the then President Ebrahim Raisi made a three-day trip to Pakistan, receiving a warm welcome from the people and officials of the country.
Shortly after Raisi’s visit to Pakistan, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif travelled to Tehran to pay his respects and attend the memorial ceremony for the late President Raisi. A year later, in May of this year, Sharif visited Tehran once again to express his appreciation on Iran’s stance regarding the India-Pakistan conflict. Pezeshkian’s recent visit was also at the invitation of Shehbaz Sharif and, in effect, a reciprocal response to Sharif’s trip to Tehran.
Thus, within less than two years, top officials from Iran and Pakistan have travelled to each other’s countries four times in addition to their frequent meetings on the sidelines of major regional and international summits. These repeated meetings reflect the close ties between the two countries and underscore the importance of their relationship, particularly in the current context where the need to expand cooperation is being felt more than ever.
Iran-Pakistan relations have enjoyed relative stability in recent decades, and visits and meetings between their officials have become a common occurrence. However, what added extra significance to the President’s recent trip were the unique political circumstances and regional and global developments that have unfolded in recent months.
The outbreak of war between India and Pakistan in May 2025, both nuclear-armed nations, placed the region in an extremely sensitive situation. Although the war was short-lived and lasted no more than four days, its consequences still linger for both countries and the broader region and world.
Ongoing war in the occupied territories and the genocide in Gaza have also deeply impacted international politics. In this regard, the stances of Islamic countries, especially Iran and Pakistan, carry considerable weight. Both Tehran and Islamabad have taken firm, united positions, emphasizing full support for the Palestinian cause.
Another issue is the tariff war initiated by Trump against many countries, which has drawn in most nations to some extent. Pakistan has not been spared, facing threats from Trump’s policies. Most significantly, the recent 12-day imposed war launched by the Zionist regime against Iran has left wide-ranging effects on the region and fundamentally altered the geopolitics of the region and the Islamic world. Pakistan’s stance as one of the most important and populous Muslim nations and a nuclear power holds particular importance.
The President’s visit to Pakistan came at a time when the country’s stance regarding the 12-day imposed war was under intense scrutiny in Iran. Given that the Iran-Israel conflict erupted shortly after the India-Pakistan war, Pakistan’s governmental and public reaction could have heavily influenced the Islamic Republic’s position toward the India-Pakistan conflict.
Available evidence suggests that Pakistan was satisfied with Iran’s position. Shehbaz Sharif’s visit to Tehran immediately after the India-Pakistan conflict — aimed at thanking Iran and other supporters — clearly attests to this. Islamabad’s officials expressed appreciation for Iran’s foreign minister’s trip to both Pakistan and India and Iran’s efforts to mediate between the two sides.
Additionally, the Pakistani public’s sensitivity toward the Palestinian issue and their strong aversion to the Zionist regime’s criminal acts in Gaza significantly contributed to their support for Iran. There is also a growing concern in Pakistan about illegal joint actions by the Zionist regime and the US against Iran’s nuclear facilities, and a possibility that similar actions could one day be taken against other countries as well.
All these factors led to Islamabad’s broad and firm support for Tehran and the unequivocal condemnation of Israeli and US aggression. This condemnation was strongly voiced in the UN Security Council by Pakistan’s permanent representative. Pakistan, as a non-permanent member and rotating president of the Security Council at the time, explicitly labelled the bombing of nuclear facilities as illegal.
Furthermore, Islamabad supported dialogue and negotiation and endorsed Iran’s right to nuclear knowledge. Simultaneously, inside Pakistan, there was comprehensive support from the army and political figures to the extent that Pakistan’s Parliament passed a resolution in support of Iran against Israeli aggression.
All of this indicates that Pakistan, as a neighbour and fellow Muslim country, strongly supported the Islamic Republic of Iran. Thus, the Iranian President’s visit could be seen as a reciprocal response to Shehbaz Sharif’s appreciative visit to Tehran.
For decades, Iran-Pakistan relations have been influenced by security issues, particularly regarding the condition of their shared borders. In past visits by Pakistani prime ministers and military chiefs to Tehran and vice versa, a recurring theme has been upgrading border security to border economics. Over the years, both sides have developed mechanisms to enhance coordination in combating terrorism.
As outlined in the President’s itinerary, boosting economic and trade relations between the two nations was a major goal of the current trip. Considering the economic structures and capacities of Iran and Pakistan, there was broad consensus that their economic cooperation potential far exceeds current levels.
On a larger scale, one crucial issue Tehran and Islamabad should consider is tapping into regional economic capacities. One such opportunity is connecting Pakistan to Turkey and Europe via Iran. Both Tehran and Islamabad can capitalize on the improved recent relations between Pakistan and Turkey. Additionally, interest from traders in operating through Chabahar port and its proximity to Gwadar port presents an opportunity to transform these two potentially rival ports into complementary nodes along Pakistan’s trade route to Europe.
All of this depends on the economic outlooks of Iran and Pakistan: whether they aim to use each other’s economic potential and act as partners and complements. There is an ocean of untapped capacities in both countries, and activating them requires serious political will from both sides.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
The writer is former Consul General of Iran in Karachi; he’s currently based in Tehran