The joint virtual session between the Iranian Institute for Political and International Studies(IPIS) and the Pakistan’s Center for Global & Strategic Studies (CGSS) about the regional and international issues was held on Monday, January 11, 2021. The session was attended by Dr.Mohammad KazemSajjadpour, Deputy Minister of MOFA & President of IPIS; Mr.Majid Ghafelebashi-Research Deputy at the Center; Saeid Ghaderi and Vahid Karimi, Senior Experts at IPIS; Keyhan Barzegar and Hassan Ahmadian, University Professors; Khalid Taimur, Executive Director of CGSS; Muhammad Saleem Mazhar, Shabir Ahmad Khan,Brigadier Akhtar Nawaz Janjua, and Iram Khalid, Senior Researchers at CGSS.
The session was held in the form of two panels, “Examining the Most Important Issues in West and South Asia”, and “The New US Government and the Coronavirus Pandemic”, to answer the following questions:1) What are the latest developments in the security and political spheres of the sub-continent, West and South Asia, with focus on A) Afghanistan, B) the Persian Gulf? (2) What are the impacts of trans-regional powers in intensifying the regional tensions? (3) What will the effects of the new US administration be on international issues? (4) How will the Coronavirus pandemic’s economic and social impacts on the world be assessed?
Here are the most important issues touched upon at the session:
The Iranian and Pakistani ties enjoy a long history, based on brotherhood and friendship, in a way that nowadays there are no unsolvable issues between the two countries. Despite the regional and international changes and developments, the two countries’ ties have persisted based on mutual respect and shared interests. The cooperation and relations of the two countries as two regional powers can restore peace and stability to the region.
Pakistan and Iran’s top priority is regional collaboration through close cooperation with the regional countries for solving conflicts and crises. For now, the trans-regional interferences have caused imbalance, leading to spread of threats and instability. For this reason, widening regional bilateral and multilateral cooperation can restore balance and symmetry to the region.
Regional cooperation is the only way out of the challenges and problems of the countries in the region. This is while some trans-regional countries intend to create instability and intensify ethnic challenges and fuel extremism by direct and indirect interference to secure their interests.
The new US administration should change the Trump administration’s policy which strengthened unilaterism and destroyed the bilateral and multilateral agreements; because carrying on the current trend will further isolate the country.