Tehran took a strategic leap forward as it offered Islamabad to address its irritants on the western and eastern border, unmindful of extra-regional wrangling. The Islamic Republic termed this gesture of unconditional support for Pakistan as a 'blank cheque', as security concerns grow in the wake of Taliban's adamant attitude and Delhi's continued intransigence.

Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran's National Security Council and an aide to Supreme Leader Syed Ali Khamenei, turned the tables on diplomacy by exhibiting unprecedented largesse in bilateralism, as he said Pakistan can count on it in adversity. He unfolded a vision of 'unlimited cooperation' in economic ventures with a pledge to undo any kind of barriers coming in the way.

Larijani, on a high-profile debut visit to Pakistan, met t

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