Press TV reported that Pakistan has reaffirmed its commitment to the multibillion dollar Iran gas pipeline project. The announcement by the foreign ministry comes amid reports that the United States is pushing Islamabad to abandon the project in return for its financial assistance.

These violent protests against the long power outages are a grim reminder that Pakistan is in the midst of severe energy crisis. Many parts of the country remain without electricity for several hours even during the month of Ramadan.

Facing public pressure, the government is exploring several options to meet the country’s future energy needs. One such option is to import natural gas from neighboring Iran. But Islamabad is under pressure from the United States to abandon the project.

Recently, the US has released financial assistance for Pakistan’s energy sector raising questions over the government’s commitment to the Iran gas pipeline. Many experts are of the opinion that Islamabad should resist the US pressure and press ahead with its plan to import gas from Iran.

The multi billion dollar project dubbed as peace pipeline has already been signed between Pakistan and Iran and the first deliveries of natural gas are expected by 2014. Experts believe the Iran gas pipeline project is not only vital for Pakistan’s future energy needs but will also help minimize the country’s reliance on the western powers particularly the United States.

Source - Press TV

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