PESHAWAR, Dec 21: The three-day official visit of the President of Iran Mohammad Khatami would further boost trade and commerce between Pakistan and Iran, said Abbasali Abdullahi, Consul General of Iran here on Saturday.

Briefing local newsmen about the visit, he said that the Iranian deputy minister of transport had arrived in Islamabad with a seven-member high-ranking officials team ahead of the president’s visit starting from Monday, to sort out modalities and explore areas of cooperation in consultation with their Pakistani counterparts.

Both the countries had already formed a joint commission on agriculture, commerce, custom, transport and trade, he said.

He said the delegation was here to prepare drafts aiming at boosting the trade ties between the two Muslim countries, which would be signed by the members of the presidential delegation.

He denied that there was a trade competition between the two countries, saying that the products of both the countries were different and therefore the question of competition did not arise.

Pakistan, he said, had exportable items like rice, leather, wheat and food items whereas Iran sought markets for fresh and dry fruits and petrochemical products.

To a question about the Afghan problem which has strained the Pakistan-Iran relation somewhat, he said: “I don’t think I can exactly call it a problem. Both Pakistan and Afghanistan are Muslim countries and there is no problem with them,” said he, adding that his country wanted repatriation of refugees from Pakistan and Iran with dignity and honour.

Asked whether Iran would use its influence on India to soften its stand on the Kashmir issue, because Pakistan had already given a go-ahead signal for the gas pipeline from Iran via Pakistan to India, he said: “Of course, Iran would like to solve the core issue of Kashmir between Pakistan and India, but (essentially it) is an issue between these two countries.”

He also welcomed the Muttahida Majlis Amal (MMA)’s statement of receiving the Iranian president and said: “I very much appreciate the gesture of goodwill shown by the religious parties”.

To another question as to what extent Iran would use its influence to unite the Ummah against the possible US attack on Iraq, he said it was their sincere belief to gather the Muslim countries on a single platform, but said it depended on the interests of the respective countries. However, he said, Iran had already sent delegations to several Muslim countries, because Iran had suffered a great deal from such conflicts in the past.

He said the government of Iran was in touch with local provincial governments in Zahedan and Quetta to put brakes on the smuggling of petrol to Pakistani markets, because owing to smuggling of petrol, Iran was importing oil from the international market to the tune of US $600 million annually.

Similarly, he said, efforts were also afoot to curb the smuggling of medicines to Pakistani markets.