Pakistan vows to do its best to free Iran guards: Rouhani

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani says his Pakistani counterpart has pledged to commit his outmost efforts to securing the release of the Iranian border guards who have been abducted and transferred to Pakistan.

President Rouhani’s remarks came following his return to Tehran on Thursday evening from a one-day visit to the Afghan capital of Kabul to take part in the 5th International Nowruz Festival, during which he met and held talks with his regional counterparts partaking in the event.

Rouhani said that, during a quad-lateral meeting with the presidents of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Tajikistan, the four leaders discussed issues of interest but mainly focused on concerns over combating terrorism and extremism.

He added that Pakistani President Mamnoon Hussain emphasized during the meeting that he will put all his efforts into bringing about the release of the Iranian guards, adding that Islamabad will also try hard to keep its joint border with Iran safe from now on.

Last Sunday, the Jaish-ul-Adl terrorist group, which has claimed responsibility for the February 6 abduction of the five Iranian border guards in Jakigour region in Iran’s Sistan-and-Baluchestan Province, claimed that it has killed one of the hostages.

The Iranian president added that in his talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, the two leaders along with other senior officials discussed in detail the narcotics trade and drug addiction as a major problem in the region that chiefly affects Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Central Asian nations.

Rouhani added that he suggested to the Afghan president that in addition to bilateral cooperation on halting the cross-border transit of narcotics, there should also be a wider regional collaboration on containing drug trafficking across borders.