Pakistani FM Rejects Possible US Sanctions on Islamabad over IP Gas Pipeline

Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar dismissed possibility of the US sanctions on Islamabad for the country’s gas deal with Iran.

Speaking to reporters in Islamabad on Thursday, the Pakistani minister expressed confidence that the United States would never impose sanctions on Pakistan because of the Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline project.

She pointed to close ties between Iran and Pakistan, and stated that expansion of ties with Tehran is very important to Islamabad.

“Execution of Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline is in favor of both countries’ national interests and is a constructive step in helping the boost of peace in the region.”

Iran and Pakistan on Monday officially inaugurated the construction phase of a gas pipeline project which is due to take Iran’s rich gas reserves to the energy-hungry South Asian nation.

The project kicked off in a ceremony attended by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari at the two countries’ shared border region in Iran’s Southeastern city of Chabahar.

The 2700-kilometer long pipeline was to supply gas for Pakistan and India which are suffering a lack of energy sources, but India has evaded talks. In 2011, Iran and Pakistan declared they would finalize the agreement bilaterally if India continued to be absent in the meeting.

According to the project proposal, the pipeline will begin from Iran’s Assalouyeh Energy Zone in the south and stretch over 1,100 km through Iran. In Pakistan, it will pass through Baluchistan and Sindh but officials now say the route may be changed if China agrees to the project.