Deputy PM Ishaq Dar met Iranian FM Abbas Araghchi on the sidelines of the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers meeting, urging restraint and diplomacy to build on the June 2026 Islamabad MoU between Iran and the United States.
Cholpon-Ata, Kyrgyz Republic – Web Desk: Pakistan on Friday called for building on the understandings reached between Iran and the United States under the Islamabad MoU, as Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar met his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi on the sidelines of a regional summit.
The meeting took place during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers gathering in Cholpon-Ata, Kyrgyz Republic. According to a statement from Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the two ministers used the occasion to reaffirm the longstanding ties between Islamabad and Tehran and to review the evolving regional security situation.
DPM Dar conveyed Pakistan’s deep concern over recent regional tensions and called for dialogue, restraint and de-escalation from all parties, along with sustained diplomatic engagement, to secure lasting peace and stability. He specifically pointed to the need to build further on the understandings reached under the Islamabad MoU, an interim arrangement signed between Iran and the United States in June 2026.
Foreign Minister Araghchi, in turn, acknowledged Pakistan’s continued diplomatic support and its constructive role in regional peace efforts. He also expressed gratitude for Islamabad’s assistance in facilitating the safe return of Iranian fishermen and crew members, including those from vessels that had been intercepted by US forces, noting Pakistan’s coordination with Iranian, American and other relevant authorities to ensure their safe transit home.
The two sides agreed to sustain close coordination and hold regular consultations on matters of shared interest, while reaffirming their commitment to jointly pursue regional peace, stability and prosperity, the Foreign Office said.
The talks come at a sensitive moment, with Iran and the United States locked in a fresh standoff over the Strait of Hormuz that has cast uncertainty over the durability of the Islamabad MoU reached only weeks earlier. Compounding regional anxieties, Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement recently claimed missile and drone strikes on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea and threatened to blockade Saudi ports, stoking fears of broader disruption to global shipping and energy markets.
The Dar-Araghchi meeting followed a separate diplomatic exchange a day earlier, in which Pakistan and Saudi Arabia agreed to maintain close coordination on regional security and the free flow of maritime trade. That understanding was reached in a phone call between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, during which the prime minister condemned the attacks on Saudi tankers. Taken together, the exchanges underscore Pakistan’s intensifying diplomatic activity as it seeks to position itself as a stabilising voice amid escalating tensions across the Gulf and wider Middle East.
