Dar meets Araghchi on SCO summit sidelines, stresses 'sincere implementation' of Islamabad MoU

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Tuesday and stressed that the “sincere implementation” of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was the only way forward amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, according to the Foreign Office (FO).

They shared these views as they met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of State meeting in Kyrgyz capital Bishkek, where Dar arrived a day ago after a day-long visit to Turkiye. He has joined Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who is due to address the summit.

Meanwhile, the FO described the meeting between Dar and Araghchi as a “warm exchange”.

It said the two ministers exchanged views on bilateral relations and regional developments and reaffirmed the importance of continued engagement.

“The DPM underscored that dialogue and diplomacy remain essential to promoting peace and stability in the region, and that sincere implementation by both parties to the conflict of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding of June 2026 remains the only way forward,” the FO said in a statement on X.

The MoU, signed in June, provided a framework for ending the war that began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. It was a result of mediation efforts spearheaded by Pakistan and others.

In April, Pakistan also brokered a ceasefire between the US and Iran.

The April ceasefire put an end to the most intense fighting, but sporadic attacks, mainly around the Strait of Hormuz, have dimmed the prospects of a final peace agreement.

A day ago, PM Shehbaz had met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the summit in Bishkek and underscored the need to build on the understandings reached under the Islamabad MoU.

On his part, Pezeshkian appreciated Pakistan’s “consistent diplomatic efforts for regional peace and security”, a Prime Minister’s Office statement detailing the meeting said.

The prime minister also met the Uzbek president as part of his bilateral engagements on Monday, while DPM Dar held a meeting with Belarusian FM Maxim Ryzhenkov today.

Dar and Ryzhenkov discussed bilateral relations and regional developments, and exchanged views on matters of mutual interest, FO said.

SCO summit

PM Shehbaz had reached Kyrgyzstan for the summit on Monday, with the PMO saying in a statement that he would address the heads of states gathering and “present Pakistan’s stance on various regional and global issues”.

He was welcomed by Kyrgyz President Sadyr Nurgozhoevich Japarov upon his arrival at the summit’s venue on Tuesday, and later posed with other world leaders for a group photo.

Other leaders from China, Iran, Turkiye, Russia, and India are also in Kyrgyzstan for the two-day summit. The regional bloc, which also includes Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Belarus, is celebrating its 25th anniversary.

During the visit, Pakistan is set to assume the chairmanship of the SCO’s Council of Heads of State for 2026–27, with next year’s CHS summit to be hosted by Islamabad.

Apart from Dar, Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan, Communications Minister Abdul Aleem Khan and Information Minister Attaullah Tarar were accompanying the prime minister.

According to FO, PM Shehbaz will also hold bilateral discussions with the Kyrgyz president on the “entire spectrum of Pakistan-Kyrgyzstan relations” on September 2.