RismadarVoice Reporters, June 25, 2026
Iranian President, Masoud Pezeshkian has arrived in Pakistan for a state visit, marking his first trip abroad since the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28.
He was received at a military base near Islamabad on Tuesday by Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar.
The one-day visit will see Pezeshkian, who arrived with a delegation including ministers and senior officials, hold talks with Sharif and is also expected to meet separately with Zardari.
Pezeshkian travelled to Pakistan aboard an aircraft named Minab 168 a name chosen in memory of the 168 people killed when US and Israeli forces struck a girls’ school in the Iranian city of Minab on the opening day of the war in February.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who arrived earlier in the day from Oman, was also part of the visiting delegation.
The Iranian delegation is set to hold bilateral discussions with Sharif, followed by broader talks between officials from both countries. Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Senate Chairman Yousaf Raza Gilani, National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq, and Dar would also meet with the Iranian leader during his stay.
In a statement issued Monday, the ministry said the visit would allow both sides to review their bilateral relationship and look for new ways to strengthen cooperation in areas such as trade, energy, border security, regional connectivity, and people-to-people ties.
Pezeshkian’s trip follows the first formal round of talks between the United States and Iran, held in Bürgenstock, Switzerland, with Pakistan and Qatar serving as mediators in efforts to bring an end to the war.
Under the resulting agreement, the US has committed to releasing $12 billion in frozen Iranian assets and has temporarily eased sanctions to allow Iran to resume oil and petrochemical sales through August 21. The talks produced a 60-day roadmap toward a comprehensive final agreement.
This marks Pezeshkian’s second visit to Pakistan since becoming president. His first visit, in August 2025, came shortly after the 12-day Iran-Israel war and was likewise his first foreign trip following that conflict.
Analysts view the current visit largely as a gesture of appreciation for Pakistan’s role in facilitating the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, which was signed on June 18 by US President Donald Trump and President Pezeshkian, with Prime Minister Sharif signing as mediator. That agreement set in motion the diplomatic process now continuing in Switzerland.
According to Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the visit will also serve as an opportunity to discuss ongoing diplomatic developments stemming from the Islamabad MoU, along with broader regional and international issues of shared concern.
