Iranian president congratulates Pakistan’s Imran Khan

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday telephoned former cricket hero Imran Khan to congratulate him over his party’s victory in July 25 elections, local media reported.

Khan’s center-right Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), which emerged as the single largest party but fell short of simple majority in the National Assembly, will have to seek formal support from smaller parties or independents to form the next government.

Rouhani invited Khan to visit Tehran, which the latter accepted, state-run Pakistan Television (PTV) reported.

Khan thanked Rouhani for his call and noted that the two countries are tied in the knot of religion and cultural harmony.

He said Pakistan wanted to establish “special trade relations” with Iran in days to come, the PTV said.

Rouhani, for his part, said Tehran wished to further develop the bilateral relations with Islamabad.

Tehran has been pushing Islamabad for revival of multi-billion dollars Pak-Iran gas pipeline project, which has been stalled due to an overt opposition by the U.S.

Analysts see a dim possibility for revival of the long-stalled project following the fresh unilateral sanctions on Iran.