Daily Times

A day after a high-level diplomatic contact between Pakistan and Iran, both countries top military leadership interacted over the kidnapping of Iranian border guards and agreed to take more measures for enhanced security of border and fight against terrorists.

Iranian top military commander called on Pakistan for taking prompt action to arrest kidnappers of Iranian border guards. The demand came from Iranian Chief of armed forces General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri during a phone call with top commander of Pakistan Army General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Saturday. According to defence sources , the duo discussed ways and means to trace the kidnapped Iranian border security guards. The Iranian commander requested Pakistan forces to adopt all possible measures, including intelligence operation, for tracing and releasing kidnapped soldiers and border guards.

Gen Baqeri also underlined the importance of deploying more Pakistan forces on common borders with Iran to maintain security and to prevent outlaws and terrorists movement.

Meanwhile, General Qamar Javed Bajwa expressed regret over the accident and assured the Gen Baqeri of full cooperation.

He said that directives had been given to military’s Southern Command to trace the kidnapped border guards along with Pak-Iran border in close cooperation with the Iranian military.

Fourteen Basij (volunteer forces) and border guards were abducted by terrorists in Iran’s Sistan-Baluchestan border with Pakistan on Monday morning. Earlier, foreign ministers of both countries had spoken to each other on the incident.

Separately, Qatar’s Deputy Prime Minister Mohammad bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani called on Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa at the General Headquarters on Saturday. According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), matters of mutual interest, including regional security issues, were discussed during the meeting. The army chief said that Pakistan would continue to positively contribute towards regional peace and stability.

Published in Daily Times, October 21^st 2018.