ISLAMABAD: In a rare shift in Pakistan’s decades-old foreign policy stance, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said on Friday that Islamabad is prepared to consider establishing diplomatic relations with Armenia.
Speaking at a press conference, Dar said he held a cordial telephone conversation with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, during which both sides agreed to explore formal diplomatic engagement.
“I held a cordial conversation today [Friday] with the Foreign Minister of Armenia, Ararat Mirzoyan, and agreed to consider establishing diplomatic relations between Pakistan and Armenia,” he stated.
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Armenia’s foreign minister also confirmed the discussion on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), saying both sides discussed the establishment of diplomatic ties in line with a shared vision for cooperative engagement at bilateral and multilateral levels.
“Had an important phone call with DPM & FM Ishaq Dar today. Following recent developments & in line with the vision of cooperative engagement both bilaterally & on multilateral platforms, we discussed establishment of diplomatic relations between Armenia & Pakistan,” Mirzoyan wrote on X.
Pakistan has never recognised Armenia, aligning itself closely with Azerbaijan in the decades-long Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Islamabad’s unyielding support for Baku – along with Armenia’s historically warm ties with India – had kept the possibility of formal ties off the table.
However, Islamabad recently welcomed a peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan, brokered by US President Donald Trump. The move signalled a softening of Pakistan’s position.
“Since Armenia and Azerbaijan have resolved their differences and established diplomatic ties, what problem do we have,” Dar remarked, while reaffirming Islamabad’s support for Baku and Ankara.
He recalled that both Azerbaijan and Turkiye supported Pakistan’s position during its confrontation with India in May.
Speaking more broadly on foreign affairs, the deputy prime minister highlighted Pakistan’s diplomatic outreach at various multilateral forums, including the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the United Nations.
He said Pakistan played a key role in ending a months-long deadlock at the UN, where it facilitated the adoption of a significant Security Council resolution on Palestine.
Dar also shared details of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s recent visit to Islamabad, during which discussions were held on expanding the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) under its second phase, and progress on the 647-kilometre Trans-Afghan connectivity project.
He added that Pakistan had requested Chinese support for two major regional infrastructure initiatives: a Peshawar-to-Afghanistan highway and the Pakistan-Uzbekistan-Afghan-istan transit railway – both of which Beijing has agreed to in principle.
Referring to his own visit to Dhaka on August 23 – the first by a Pakistani foreign minister in over a decade – Dar said six agreements and memoranda of understanding were signed between the two countries.
He said both sides had agreed on the need to revitalise the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
“SAARC was the brainchild of Bangladesh but has remained inactive due to the hegemony and stubbornness of one country,” Dar remarked.
He said both Islamabad and Dhaka were open to reactivating the forum, even if that meant excluding the obstructing party, which he did not name.
On regional security, Dar said Islamabad had asked Kabul to either take action against Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) operatives or hand them over to Pakistani authorities. He added that over 700 new border checkposts had been established to strengthen border security.
Turning to India, he reiterated Pakistan’s position on water rights, warning that any form of “water aggression” would be considered an act of war.
“We do not beg for negotiations. If India wants talks, that’s welcome; if not, it is not a problem for us,” he said.
He also confirmed that the Afghan government had recently handed over a protest démarche to Pakistan’s ambassador in Kabul.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025