Iran, Pakistan agree to hold joint naval drill

"In addition to increasing intelligence cooperation on fighting terrorism, we agreed to hold joint naval exercises in the future," chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Major-General Mohammad Bagheri said in an interview with Iranian media at the end of his four-day visit to the neighboring country of Pakistan and meeting with the high-ranking military officials of the country.

He said that Pakistan has a special place in the foreign relations of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

"In recent and also previous visits, we have agreed on the need to provide better security at the shared borders, and fortunately, in recent years, significant efforts have been made by both neighbors to create border barriers, control commuting at the shared borders, drug trafficking, human trafficking and countering other elements of insecurity at the borders," General Bagheri added.

Meanwhile, he underscored, "Fortunately, the shared border between the two countries is much safer than the past."

The head of the Iranian military delegation on the visit to Pakistan further pointed to the serious willingness of the Islamic Republic of Iran to expand relations with its neighbors and said, "Iran's membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization will definitely strengthen Iran's relations with Pakistan and other SCO member states."

"Coordination between Iran and Pakistan will take place immediately in the case of any incident on the border, and fortunately our shared borders are moving towards full security, something that was one of the top topics on the agenda of our discussions with our Pakistani counterparts," he added.

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