Tuesday’s meeting takes place around two weeks after Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni’s
visit to Islamabad, where he also held a meeting with Railways Minister Hanif Abbasi. During that meeting, the two sides agreed to expand railway cooperation and strengthen cross-border connectivity.
They also discussed the revival of the
Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul (ITI) freight train service and measures to enhance regional connectivity, the statement said.
As maritime trade faces uncertainty due to the Gulf crisis, Pakistan also
permitted exporters in March this year to continue shipping food and pharmaceutical products to Iran via land routes without mandatory banking instruments.
Simultaneously, Islamabad allowed rice exports to Central Asian Republics and Azerbaijan through Iran. In total, 10 food items — including rice, seafood, potatoes, meat, onions, maize, citrus fruits, bananas, tomatoes, and frozen chicken — along with two non‑food items (pharmaceuticals and tents) were cleared for land‑route exports without financial instruments.
To strengthen border management and formalise cross‑border flows, Pakistan established the same month a new customs station at Jeerak in Panjgur district, designated as the fifth crossing point for trade and transit with Iran. The facility aims to regulate passenger movement, document personal baggage, and channel informal trade into the formal economy.