Pakistan, Armenia formalise diplomatic ties

Tianjin
Pakistan and Armenia have formally signed a joint communique establishing diplomatic relations following announcement of the major breakthrough made by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar two days ago.
In an X post, FM Dar said that he and his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan “are pleased to sign and exchange a Joint Communiqué establishing diplomatic relations between Pakistan and Armenia, on the sidelines of the 25th SCO Summit in Tianjin, China.”
“We reaffirmed our commitment to the principles and objectives of the UN Charter, and agreed to work together to further strengthen bilateral cooperation in diverse fields, including economy, education, culture, and tourism,” he added.
The key development came days after foreign ministers of the two countries agreed to consider establishing Islamabad-Yerevan diplomatic ties following their telephonic conversation.
Pakistan and Armenia’s ties were shaped by regional geopolitical rivalry, with Islamabad consistently backing Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
The development came weeks after Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a US-brokered peace agreement during a meeting with US President Donald Trump that analysts say would boost bilateral economic ties after decades of conflict.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have been at odds since the late 1980s when Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous Azerbaijani region mostly populated by ethnic Armenians, broke away from Azerbaijan with support from Armenia.
Azerbaijan took back full control of the region in 2023, prompting almost all of the territory’s 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee to Armenia.
Reacting to the development, PM Shehbaz Sharif welcomed “the historic peace agreement” and said that it marked the dawn of a new era of peace, stability, and cooperation in the South Caucasus, a region that has endured decades of conflict and human suffering.