Officials said on Saturday that Pakistan's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi was heading to Tehran as part of Islamabad's diplomatic efforts to promote dialogue between Iran and the United States amid renewed attacks. Diplomatic and security sources said: "Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi is travelling to Tehran today for a series of high-level meetings with Iranian officials." Naqvi is widely seen as being close to Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, who has also visited Iran as part of Islamabad's efforts to mediate between the warring parties. Photo released by Iran's Foreign Ministry showing Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi in Tehran. The interior minister has made repeated visits to Tehran and Islamabad since the first round of direct talks between Iran and the United States. The visit comes after Naqvi met his Iranian counterpart, Eskandar Momeni, on the sidelines of a meeting of Shanghai Cooperation Organization interior ministers in Kyrgyzstan on Thursday and Friday. In a statement issued after the meeting, Pakistan's Interior Ministry said: "The two interior ministers emphasized the need to continue diplomatic efforts steadfastly in pursuit of lasting peace in the region." The visit also comes after the United States and Iran recently resumed attacks against each other in the Gulf despite a ceasefire that has been in place for nearly two months since the outbreak of the war on Feb. 28.
