Iran's Embassy Responds to Pakistan Following 'Confessions of Former Indian Officer'

On Thursday, April 1st, the Iranian Embassy in Pakistan officially stated that media reports in that country regarding the arrest of an Indian spy with an Iranian passport 'could have negative repercussions' on the relations between the two countries. According to the state news agency IRNA, the release of these reports is considered the 'product of thoughts' that, according to the embassy, 'do not wish for the relations between the two countries to expand further and for the agreements made during the Iranian President's visit to Pakistan to bear fruit.' The Islamic Republic's embassy also emphasized that Iran considers its borders with Pakistan as 'borders of peace and friendship.' This statement comes as reports indicate that Islamabad has requested Tehran to clarify the 'confessions' aired in Pakistan from a 'former Indian Navy officer' who claimed to have been conducting operations against Pakistan from the Chabahar port in Iran. The 'confessions' of Kulbhushan Jadhav, an Indian citizen, were aired last Saturday, in which the detained individual stated that he had been working at the Chabahar port and intended to carry out 'sabotage' at facilities in Balochistan, Pakistan. Pakistan has accused the detained individual of being a member of the foreign branch of India's intelligence agency. India has rejected the aired confessions. The Indian newspaper 'Hindu' reported that on April 1st, Islamabad officially requested the Iranian ambassador in Pakistan to explain this matter. The Pakistani news network 'Geo' stated that Islamabad has asked Tehran to cooperate in finding 'other Indian intelligence agents in Iran.' The 'confessions' of the Indian citizen were aired around the time when Hassan Rouhani, the Iranian President, visited Pakistan, and the parties signed several cooperation documents, including security cooperation along the borders of Sistan and Baluchestan province.