Pakistani FM in Tehran amid standoff with US

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has met with his Pakistani counterpart Khawaja Muhammad Asif in Tehran to discuss bilateral ties and the latest regional and international developments.

According to Press TV, Asif arrived in Tehran on Monday for a one-day visit at the head of a political and economic delegation for talks with Zarif as well as Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Vice President for Economic Affairs Mohammad Nahavandian.

Iran's Tasnim news agency said bilateral relations and the new US strategy in Afghanistan were at the heart of the negotiations. 

Asif will head to Iran's holy city of Mashhad later in the day to visit the shrine of Imam Reza (Peace Be Upon Him), the eighth Imam of Shia Muslims, and meet local officials, the news agency reported.  

The Pakistani foreign minister is on a four-nation tour of China, Russia, Iran and Turkey as tensions have been rising between Islamabad and Washington over the latter’s new strategy in Afghanistan. He has already traveled to China and plans to visit Turkey next before winding down his trip in Russia.

Pakistani diplomats said the trip sends a strong message to the US that Pakistan enjoys broad regional support, after President Donald Trump accused Islamabad of “continuing to harbor criminals and terrorists” in Afghanistan.

SS