Iran, Pakistan envoys set to resume duties

The ambassadors of Pakistan and Iran will return to their respective capitals on Thursday, over a week after the two countries conducted tit-for-tat strikes inside each other’s territories—a development that had left them on the brink of a major conflict.

Official sources told The Express Tribune on Wednesday that Pakistan’s Ambassador to Iran, Mudassir Tipu, will return to Tehran on January 26. His Iranian counterpart will also resume his duties this week.

Pakistan withdrew its envoy and asked the Iranian ambassador to leave as a protest over Iran’s missile strikes in Panjgur district of Balochistan province on January 16. Iran claimed the strikes hit the alleged hideouts of Jaish-al Adl group, a militant outfit operating in Iran’s Sistan-Baluchestan province.

Shocked by the Iranian violation of its airspace, Pakistan condemned the transgression and contested its claims that strikes killed terrorists. Islamabad said those strikes only killed 2 children and injured 3 girls.

Read more: Pakistan-Iran border remains open: official

Two days later, Pakistan mounted retaliatory strikes, targeting what it said were hideouts of Baloch terrorist organizations. Iran admitted those killed in Pakistani strikes were not its nationals.

After Pakistan’s retaliation, the two sides were quick to climb down the escalation ladder. Both sides established contacts and agreed to de-escalate tensions. The foreign ministers of Pakistan and Iran spoke thrice by telephone as part of hectic efforts to defuse tensions. The two countries then agreed to restore full diplomatic ties with the return of ambassadors to each other’s capitals.

To take the normalization process forward, the Iranian foreign minister will be visiting Pakistan on January 29. The sources said tensions may have eased between the two countries, but the military standoff has shaken the foundation of their ties.

They said the two sides during the visit of the Iranian foreign minister would discuss ways and means to prevent the recurrence of such a situation in the future. One source said the rupture caused by last week’s tit-for-tat attacks would take time to heal.

The two countries often boast about their “friendly and brotherly” ties, but underneath there do exist certain issues that undermine their cooperation. At the heart of the issue is the presence of certain militant groups on both sides of the border.

The recent tension has brought that issue to public attention in a more pronounced manner, the source explained, saying the two sides would have to agree on new terms of engagement. The source said without a new arrangement, there may remain a possibility of tensions erupting in the future.

The two sides have been working quietly to agree on a new framework dealing with the threat of terrorism since the de-escalation in tensions. The visit of the Iranian foreign minister is seen as significant as that would set the direction for the future.