By Asghar Ali Mubarak
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday underlined the need for promoting barter trade and economic rela-tions with Iran for the mutual benefit of the two brotherly countries.
The president, talking to Iran’s Ambassador to Pakistan Dr Reza Amiri Moghadam, who called on him, at Aiwan-e-Sadr, said that both countries had great scope for expanding bilateral economic cooperation in diverse fields.
Talking to the ambassador, the president expressed his commitment to further strengthen bilateral relations between the two brotherly countries. He called for working together to overcome the common challenges faced by both sides.
The Iranian ambassador congratulated the president on assuming the office.
He said that both Iran and Pakistan enjoyed historical, religious and cultural ties, which were becoming stronger with time. He emphasised the need for increasing the bilateral trade volume, banking cooperation, and air and business linkages between the two countries.
The ambassador said that Pakistan could benefit from the Chahbahar-Zahedan railroad for trade with Central Asia, Eu-rope and Turkiye. He expressed the hope that Pak-Iran relations would receive fresh impetus under the leadership of President Asif Ali Zardari. He also conveyed warm regards from the Iranian President Dr Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, for the President Zardari. Later, Ambassador of Palestine to Pakistan, Ahmed Jawad Rabei, also called on President Asif Ali Zardari and congratulated him on assuming the office.
The ambassador highlighted the atrocities and the reign of terror unleashed by the Israeli forces against innocent Pal-estinians in the Gaza Strip. Talking to the Palestinian ambassador, the President said that it was very painful to see the tragic sufferings of Palestinians at the hands of Israeli forces. He stated that Pakistan had historic ties with Palestine, and would continue to stand by its Palestinian brothers and raise its voice at all fora.
He lauded the bravery and resilience of the Palestinian people, who had been waging a long struggle against Israeli occupation. President Zardari urged the international community to make efforts for the free flow of humanitarian assistance to Gaza by lifting all the barriers and ensuring the protection of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip. He said that Pakistan would send additional relief goods, including food and medicine, to the Palestinian people.
The ambassador appreciated Pakistan’s support in the field of education as over 50,000 Palestinians had graduated in various disciplines from educational institutions in Pakistan.
He also conveyed the warm regards of the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and thanked the government and the people of Pakistan for their consistent support and solidarity with the Palestinian people.
