ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Wednesday held back-to-back telephone calls with his Iranian and Turkish counterparts on issues of “mutual interests”, at a time when Islamic states are involved in backchannel deliberations as Iran and the United States head towards a fresh round of talks hoping to avoid a conflict.
The Foreign Office, commenting on Ishaq Dar’s telephone call with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, said, “They discussed regional developments and underscored the importance of dialogue and diplomacy. They agreed to continue close engagement and coordination.”
The telephone call came soon after an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Shamkhani said that Iran’s missile capabilities are its red line and are not a subject to be negotiated as Trump once again threatened to carry out strikes on Iran if an agreement is not reached.
In a separate telephone call with Turkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, the Foreign Office said, “The two leaders exchanged views on regional and international developments, discussed matters of mutual interest, and agreed to remain in close coordination”.
Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Dar posted on his X account that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has decided to appoint 19 ambassadors and consuls general to represent Pakistan abroad. However, there was no formal statement from the Foreign Office on these diplomatic postings, but the spokesperson had clarified in an earlier media briefing that there will be no changes in Kabul.
“Building on the momentum of the last two years of robust foreign policy engagement and international outreach, may our envoys carry this mission forward with clarity of purpose and wisdom, with clear emphasis on ‘economic diplomacy’,” tweeted Dar.
He announced the following but did not elaborate where the returning diplomats would be posted. The most significant postings relate to London and Tehran.
Ambassadors/High Commissioners: 1 Bangkok — Ms Saadia Altaf Qazi 2 Berlin — Salman Sharif 3 Dar-es-Salam —Hasnain Yousaf 4 Dushanbe — Irfan Ahmed 5 Geneva — Tahir Hussain Andrabi 6 Kampala — Ashar Shahzad 7 Kathmandu — Mohammad Aamir Khan 8 London — Chaudhry Tipu Usman 9 Nairobi — Dr Bilal Ahmed 10 Oslo — Asim Ali Khan 11 Stockholm — Ahmed Amjad Ali 12 Tashkent —Muhammad Mudassir Tipu 13 Tehran — Imran Ahmed Siddiqui
Consuls General: 1 Frankfurt — Ali Anser Zaidi 2 Guangzhou — Yasir Iqbal Butt 3 Kandahar — Shahbaz Hussain 4 Los Angeles — Siraj Ahmad Khan 5 Mazar-e-Sharif — Awais Ahmad Khan 6 Montreal — Faisal Abro.
“I commend our Ministry of Foreign Affairs and our dedicated diplomats, many serving far from home, whose professionalism and quiet service remain central to Pakistan’s representation abroad. May Allah SWT continue to guide their efforts in promoting interest of Pakistan”, added Dar.
Later, Dar received a joint delegation of the Economic Pakistan American Council (E-PAC) and the United Muslim American Association (UMAA) on Wednesday. “The foreign minister acknowledged the significant role of the US private sector in strengthening Pak-US bilateral trade and economic cooperation. He also underscored the vital contribution of civil society organisations in promoting interfaith harmony, and deeper people-to-people ties between the two countries,” said the Foreign Office.
