Iranian FM Abbas Araghchi to arrive in Pakistan on Monday ahead of his trip to India: Reports

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will arrive in Pakistan on Monday on a day-long visit to Islamabad ahead of his trip to New Delhi, media reports said on Sunday, amid tensions between India and Pakistan following the deadly Pahalgam terror attack. Araghchi, accompanied by a high-level delegation, will have a key session with Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, the Express Tribune newspaper reported, quoting diplomatic sources. Their discussions will focus on bilateral ties between Pakistan and Iran as well as the current regional situation, particularly in the context of recent Pakistan-India tensions, the paper said.

On Saturday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei told the Iranian state-run Press TV that Foreign Minister Araghchi plans to visit Pakistan and India as part of Tehran’s ongoing consultations with regional countries.

In Pakistan, Araghchi will hold consultations with high-ranking Pakistani officials, Baghaei said.

Their talks will focus on enhancing bilateral relations and addressing the latest developments at the regional and international levels, he added.

Baghaei also confirmed that the top Iranian diplomat will pay an official visit to India later in the week. The Iranian foreign minister’s visit comes amid tensions between Pakistan and India following the Pahalgam terror attack. Terrorists killed 26 people in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam on April 22, in the deadliest attack in the Valley since the Pulwama strike in 2019.

Three days after the Pahalgam terror attack, Araghchi offered to defuse tensions between India and Pakistan, saying Tehran stands ready to use its good offices in Islamabad and New Delhi to “forge greater understanding at this difficult time.”

Araghchi had condemned the Pahalgam attack “strongly and unequivocally”.