ISLAMABAD: Pakistan stresses need for uninterrupted energy supplies and safe, swift passage of ships, highlighting their importance for developing countries and global supply chains, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said during a telephone conversation with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday.
Pakistan Stresses Need for Uninterrupted Energy Supplies
During the conversation, Dar underscored the importance of maintaining uninterrupted energy supplies and ensuring the safe and swift passage of ships, particularly in view of their impact on developing countries and global supply chains.
The two officials agreed to maintain close cooperation and to meet in New York on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly.
Dar also emphasized that dialogue and diplomacy remain the only viable means of ensuring peace and stability in the region, the Foreign Office said in a statement posted on X.
The conversation came hours after Pakistan called on Yemen’s Houthis to immediately cease attacks on merchant ships and seafarers in Bab al-Mandab and condemned attempts to weaponise the waterway.
Speaking at a United Nations Security Council Arria-Formula meeting, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, stressed the need to protect freedom of navigation and the safety of commercial shipping.
Earlier this month, Yemen’s Houthis launched a lightning offensive to take control of the country’s entire Red Sea coast, giving them control over the vital Bab al-Mandab Strait.
The group has declared a maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia, targeting Saudi-linked shipping in the Red Sea as well as sites within the kingdom.
Pakistan Raises Alarm Over Maritime Security and Shipping Disruptions
Addressing the UNSC, Ambassador Ahmad said attacks on merchant vessels in the strait and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz had demonstrated that maritime crises could have far-reaching consequences for global peace, stability, energy security and food security.
Pakistan strongly condemned what it described as the Houthi militia’s attempt to weaponise Bab al-Mandab by attacking merchant shipping and seafarers navigating the strait.
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Ambassador Ahmad also reiterated Pakistan’s solidarity with Saudi Arabia, saying the Houthi attacks seriously undermine maritime security and threaten peace and development in regional countries.
He maintained that such acts could have serious consequences for maritime security as well as regional peace and stability.
Addressing the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, Ambassador Ahmad said Pakistan was deeply concerned about disruptions and attacks on commercial shipping.
