Pakistan planning to equip Iran with Shaheen missiles

Jerusalem, Aug 8 (IANS) In what could raise serious concerns in Tel Aviv and faraway Washington, certain reports have claimed that Pakistan plans to supply Tehran with its Shaheen-III medium-range ballistic missiles if Iran's ongoing conflict with Israel escalates.Citing several Arab sources, Israeli daily Jerusalem Post reported that Pakistan discussed its willingness to supply Iran with mid-range missiles at a recent meeting of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC).On Tuesday, the US administration had also indicated that it was aware of such reports coming out of the region.

"We've been very clear in our support for Israel and making sure they have what they need to defend themselves. And I don't think that you can look at this administration and not know what the message has been and what we have been very clear about," said White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre when asked if the Biden administration had spoken to Islamabad about the issue, expressed concerns and conveyed the message.

On Wednesday, Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar attended an extraordinary meeting of the OIC Executive Committee in Jeddah that was called by Iran to discuss the 57-member bloc's response to Israel following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.

Dar also attended the inauguration ceremony of the Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian recently and has been in regular touch with Iran's acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagehri Kani.

The reports of Islamabad planning to supply Shaheen-III missiles could further irk the United States which has already announced that a Pakistani man with ties to Iran has been arrested for a plot to kill former US President Donald Trump.

The involvement of Asif Raza Merchant, a 46-year-old Pakistani national from Karachi believed to be having close ties with Tehran, in the "murder-for-hire plot", has put the authorities in the Pakistani capital on a sticky wicket.

Earlier this year, Washington had warned of a "potential risk of sanctions" for anyone considering a business deal with Iran.

"Just let me say broadly, we advise anyone considering business deals with Iran to be aware of the potential risk of sanctions. But ultimately, the government of Pakistan can speak to their own foreign policy pursuits," Vedant Patel, Deputy Spokesperson of the US State Department, said after the Iranian President's visit to Pakistan.