VOA – Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrived in neighboring Pakistan late Thursday for bilateral consultations amid Tehran’s escalating tensions with the United States. Officials in Islamabad said Zarif would begin his official engagements on Friday. He will brief Pakistani civilian and military leaders on current regional developments, Iranian state media said. Tensions between Tehran and Washington have been escalating since U.S. President Donald Trump announced his decision to try to cut Iran’s oil exports to zero and beef up the American military presence in the Persian Gulf in response to what he said were Iranian threats. Pakistan already has stated it will not take sides in the confrontation and described the crisis in the Persian Gulf region as “disturbing.” Islamabad says, however, Washington’s decision to deploy an aircraft carrier and bombers has fueled tensions and “the existing precarious security situation” in the Middle East.
Support for dialogue
“We expect all sides to show restraint, as any miscalculated move can transmute into a large-scale conflict,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Faisal told a weekly news conference hours before the Iranian foreign minister landed in Islamabad.
“Pakistan always supports dialogue and desires that all issues should be settled peacefully and through engagement by all sides,” Faisal stressed.