Pakistani President Arif Alvi offered his condolences over the death of Iran's Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani to newly-appointed Iranian Ambassador to Islamabad Mohammad Ali Hosseini on Thursday, during a meeting in which the diplomat presented his credentials, state media reported
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th January, 2020) Pakistani President Arif Alvi offered his condolences over the death of Iran's Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani to newly-appointed Iranian Ambassador to Islamabad Mohammad Ali Hosseini on Thursday, during a meeting in which the diplomat presented his credentials, state media reported.
According to the state-owned Islamic Republic news Agency, Alvi stated his belief that Iran and Pakistan were two important countries in the region, and that Pakistan was ready to play a key role in helping de-escalate tensions between Tehran and Washington.
Alvi also commented that he hoped that the long-standing cordial relations between Pakistan and Iran would develop during Hosseini's tenure, the agency reported.
On Saturday, Pakistani Senator Sehar Kamran told Sputnik that the divided response to the killing of Soleimani by pro-Iran and pro-US countries could give rise to a sectarian divide between Shia and Sunni Muslims.
Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy commander of an Iraqi Shia militia group, were among those killed in the early hours of Friday by a US drone attack near Baghdad International Airport. Soleimani and al-Muhandis were blamed by Washington for organizing demonstrations at the US Embassy in Baghdad on December 31.
US President Donald Trump said the recent strikes were a preemptive, defensive move to prevent war, although later claimed that Washington has identified 52 further Iranian targets at which US forces are ready to strike. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani vowed that Tehran would retaliate against Washington and launched attacks on Wednesday against two US military bases in Iraq.
