US pressurize Zardari
to skip Iran visit
According to
Financial
Times, the visit of Pakistani President Asif
Ali Zardari to Tehran to seal a US$1.5 billion gas pipeline deal was unexpectedly
cancelled due to extreme pressure from the United States. The news has been
received in Pakistan with extreme disgust and some of the quarters term it an attack
on country’s sovereignty.
Pakistanis
are fully aware that Iran has offered hundreds of millions of dollars to
finance the long-delayed gas pipeline and Iranian stance has offended United
States. Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad, Iran's president visited Islamabad last month to offer the
financing. It was said to be just the first installment. There were also clear
indications that if Pakistan show determination and seriously go ahead with
this project it could get more money.
Reportedly President
Zardari skipped his visit to Iran on some flimsy excuse. While President House
official sources said the Iran trip was not on the itinerary but it looked all
certain that he would stop over in Tehran on way to UK, France and Turkey as he
was expected to sign some agreement pertaining to Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline.
Earlier on Tuesday, Presidential Spokesman Farhatuallah Babar had confirmed to IRNA
that President Zardari will visit Iran on December 7 for talks on bilateral and
regional issues.
Many
Pakistanis wanted President Zardari to go to Iran to sign this crucially
important agreement. They are losing patience due to inordinate delay in
implementation of the project primarily because of stiff US opposition. The
agreement was to be inked between Tehran and Islamabad during the November
visit to Pakistan by Iranian President Ahmadinejad but was differed due to text
of contract not being ready.
It sounded
like a big joke that the President met Malala
Yousafzai, a 14 year old peace activist, who is being treated at
Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital in UK rather than stopping over in Iran.
Critics termed the visit an unprecedented gesture by the president because he
did not have any diplomatic engagements in the UK other than meeting Malala.
Pakistan is
keen in going ahead with the project. Dr. Asim Hussain, Advisor to Prime
Minister on Petroleum and Natural Resources has recently visited Tehran to
finalize text. He met several Iranian officials, including President
Ahmadinejad. A delegation of Iranian oil industry experts also visited
Islamabad early in November to discuss the agreement on the payment of a
$250mln loan to Pakistan to fund the project.
In addition
to the investment, Iran is also due to build the Pakistani part of the
multi-billion-dollar pipeline. A special team has been set up in the Iranian
oil ministry to specify the method of investment and credit line for the
pipeline on Pakistani soil.