‘Iranian bakeries, restaurants once thrived in Karachi’

Sindh caretaker chief minister Justice (retd) Maqbool Baqar on Monday met Iranian Ambassador to Pakistan Reza Amiri Moghaddam at the CM House, where they talked about bilateral trade ties and other issues of mutual interest. They also censured the killing of Palestinians at the hands of Israeli forces.

Baqar mentioned that border markets had been established between Pakistan and Iran. Moghaddam informed him that two more of such markets would be established.

The interim CM said that the annual trade between the two countries had increased to $2.4 billion. The ambassador informed him that the trade volume between the two countries would soon increase to $5 billion.

The diplomat said that a project was being built to establish both road and rail linkages between Islamabad and Tehran, adding that the same route would later on be extended to Turkey.

The caretaker CM said the road infrastructure of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project was built in the area adjacent to the Pakistan-Iran border, adding that CPEC would help bring the two countries closer.

Baqar said that the centuries-old relations between Pakistan and Iran have been progressing with the passage of time. He hoped that the issue related to the proposed Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline would soon be resolved.

He recalled that Iranian bakeries and restaurants once had a thriving business in Karachi. He said that the number of Iranian traders based in the city had decreased, adding that their number should be increased.

Moghaddam said that the Persian language had been used in the Indian subcontinent for 800 years. He said that a conspiracy had been hatched to reduce the use of the Persian language in the subcontinent. Baqar said that he himself had learnt Persian when he was in secondary school.

The interim CM said that a formula should be reached for establishing banking institutions in the two countries. The ambassador noted that the partition of the subcontinent had been carried out in a manner that Kashmir would remain a permanent issue in the region.

Baqar also met Chinese Consul General in Karachi Yang Yundong, and suggested that a passenger ferry and maritime cargo service be launched between Karachi and Bandar Abbas in Iran.