Iran’s bustling capital Tehran often chokes under the tens of thousands of cars that are on the move since the dawn to dusk. Traffic jams in the nearly seven million strong city belong to the daily life – some thing understood. The elaborate road network in and around the metropolis itself caters to the sea of vehicles even late into the evening.
Equally striking is the availability of clean drinking water – direct from the tap to all and sundry, also available at public parks and tourist attractions to all and sundry. You can drink this water without the slightest fear of bugs and contamination that is so synonymous with water in Pakistan.
Access to clean water, free medical facilities, universal life insurance, strict food quality controls, minimal crime and prompt adjudication of social disputes are some of the hallmarks of the present day Iran under the system that came with Imam Khomeini in January 1979.
With women visible all around – at shopping malls, government services centres, hotels and restaurants – hardly betray the sense of a society under a conservative theocratic dispensation.
Those outsiders settled here for decades can tell the different that the society has undergone in the last few years.
“The dress code for men and women was relaxed a few years ago as the regime grappled with the challenge of a growing young population,” said a Pakistani settled here since the late 1980s.No surprise , therefore, that you come across countless women with only half covered head with golden-streaked, brown and blue hair. You can see on the busy Tehran streets even young couples strolling with hand in hand.
The city – despite the burgeoning population, which brings along its own challenges – is considerably, and admirably, clean for the sheer load of people and the business that their business generates.
The nearly 400 kilometres between Tehran, the Iranian capital, and Esphahan, the historical culture-rich city to the south, illustrate the socio-cultural diversity as well as level of economic development. Interesting contrasts that the landscape and its physical landmarks offers; from glittering multi-storeyed shopping centres overflowing with people, pretty modern electricity transmission system, eatery of all sort including buns and burgers beside the traditional Iranian dishes to the plain desert -dotted with barren hills – where not a single human being is visible for miles.
The 437 metres tall tv tower called the Milad Burj, the big state of -the-art hospital at its feet, the expansive infrastructure in the capital including the underground mass transit system, exemplify the economic strides that the country has made in the last few decades, despite having been under US-led economic sanctions for years.
Once again under US sanctions and trying to fend off more from the European nations, particularly France, UK, Germany, China and Russia – the five guarantors of the 2015 nuclear deal that President Trump has unilaterally revoked – the Iranian leadership is now attempting to reach out to its neighbours. It is already cooperating with Turkey and Russia on the issue of Syria. It maintains good trade relations with Turkey, Azerbaijan and India ( over 30 billion dollars worth of trade with the two).
It is also eager to engage Pakistan both on political and economic fronts. But practical snags come in the way of this eagerness.
Firstly, the bilateral trade is an abysmal $ 500 million ( Iran puts the figure at $ 1.3. billion), and the much promised oil refinery promised by Iran remains a distant dream.
Secondly, Pakistan’s close relations with Saudi Arabia, constitutes a huge detriment; for the Iranian officials, academia and the media Saudia is a hostile country. They often state crown prince Mohammad bin Saeed’s statements on Iran to underline what they say the obvious and undesirable tilt to Riyadh.
A certain degree of arrogance also comes across when Iranians complain of “lack of balance” in Pakistan’s relations with Saudia and their country.
“We have oil, we have the money and the space for Pakistani workers, why cant you benefit from this,” asked a former ambassador, when confronted with the argument that Saudi Arabia hosts nearly two million Pakistani workers and provides relatively cheaper oil to Pakistan.
His response; we are immediate neighbours and we can and should engage as much as we can. If we are dealing with India, Turkey, and other states around us, why should Pakistan and Iran construct a more matter-of-fact relationship, the former envoy quipped. He draws on the somewhat common cultural heritage, ethnic affinity and common positions on issues such as Afghanistan, Yemen and Syria to underscore the need for greater engagement.
Asif Durrani, Pakistan’s ambassador to Tehran, concurs; opportunities are immense and all we need to do is to indulge in a string-free dialogue, he said. There is no stopping if we can address modern day political and commercial issues through a rational dialogue, Durrani said. We have to really try to manage this relationship and the expectations associated with it.
A third issue in Iran’s dealings with Pakistan, perhaps, is the sectarian element; while it maintains and sustains relations with India in a pure business-like way, its leadership applies the sectarian prism when it comes to Pakistan; for most Iranian leadership word Saudi Arabia is anathema. So is the image of the United States for understandable reasons. But this represents a momentous challenge for Islamabad; how to navigate this complex geo-political landscape in order to establish a more substantive relationship with Tehran? Tehran, on the other hand, shall have to understand that Islamabad simply cant switch off on Saudi Arabia and embrace Iran. On the issues of Syria and Yemen Pakistan did stand with the Iranian position and ha often supported it on international fora on issues that relate to the Muslims in general and the Middle East in particular. Pakistan is also dependent on several billion dollars worth of foreign remittances not only from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries, but also from the US, which remains very close to Saudi Arabia.
This does not,however, preclude the need for Pakistan to perform on its promises such as the gas pipeline and opening more border points on the nearly 1000 km long border.
The challenge for both countries seems to be finding a rational middle ground where both can increase their political and economic engagement without hurting each other’s vital interests.
Published in Daily Times, July 9th 2018.
