Pakistan's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani has said that Iran and Pakistan have a pivotal role to play in securing sustainable peace and stability in Afghanistan.

During a meeting with the Iranian Ambassador to Pakistan Mohammad Ali Hosseini on Tuesday, Rabbani stressed Pakistan�s commitment to developing comprehensive ties with Tehran, especially in political, economic, and commercial fields.

Pointing to her meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian on the sideline of the fourth Foreign Ministerial Meeting of Afghanistan's neighbors in Samarkand, Rabbani underlined that Iran and Pakistan play a decisive role in helping regional peace, especially on issues related to Afghanistan.

Referring to the restoration of diplomatic ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia, Rabbani noted that Pakistan deeply welcomes the development in bilateral relations between Tehran and Riyadh.

Hosseini, for his part, noted that bilateral trade between Iran and Pakistan has increased significantly in recent years and it is expected to further expand by strengthening infrastructure at borders between the two countries.

Hosseini and Rabbani exchanged views on coordinating the official opening of the Pishin-Mand border market and also discussed a plan to increase Iran's electricity exports to Pakistan.

Methods of activating bilateral cooperation mechanisms such as the Special Committee on Security, Joint Consular Commission, and Political Advisory Committee were also discussed in the meeting.

'Iran, Pakistan play pivotal role in Afghan peace process'

The Iranian ambassador also held separate meetings with the Defense Minister of Pakistan Khawaja Muhammad Asif and Federal Minister for Economic Affairs, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, during which the Pakistani officials emphasized the importance of continuing high-level consultations between the two friendly and neighboring countries to strengthen bilateral cooperation in various areas.

By IRNA