Shehbaz Sharif likely to meet Iran Prez Ebrahim Raisi this month

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is likely to meet Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi this month, sources quoted by ARY News reported on Thursday. Sharif is expected to visit Balochistan on May 18 to meet with neighbouring Iran's leader.

The sources, cited by ARY News, said that the meeting of the two leaders will likely be held at the border crossing in Pishin. The sources also said that President Raisi and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will jointly inaugurate a 100-megawatt power supply from Iran to Pakistan.

Presently, Pakistan imports 200-megawatt electricity from Iran, while there is capacity to enhance the import to 500 megawatts, according to sources quoted by ARY News.

Since 2002, Pakistan has been importing power from Iran to feed the Makran area of Balochistan. The Pak-Iran border market may be publicly opened by the presidents of Iran and Pakistan.

According to sources, Pakistan and Iran will establish three new markets near their border to increase border trade. The sources said, "A market has already been opened at Mand," adding, "The work has been in progress to open two more markets on the Pakistan-Iran border."

On Wednesday, Pakistan and Iran reached an agreement regarding the revival of the gas pipeline project, increased trade between the two nations, and aviation cooperation, including direct flights, during the visit of a delegation from the Islamic Republic of Iran to Islamabad, according to ARY News.

The long-standing issue of the Pak-Iran Gas pipeline was also discussed during the conference. Naveed Qamar emphasised the need of moving the project through quickly since it has enormous potential for fostering energy cooperation between the two nations.

He reiterated his determination to address any difficulties and move through with the project, which would bring enormous advantages to both nations, ARY News reported.