Nur Khan Airbase welcome took centre stage on Saturday when Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif personally received Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian in Islamabad.
The red carpet greeting at the Pakistan Air Force’s Nur Khan facility said by New Delhi to have been “destroyed” during its abortive Operation Sindoor.
Underscored how little damage the Indian strike narrative left on the ground or in Pakistan’s regional diplomacy.
Nur Khan Airbase welcome: optics of a disputed runway
Pezeshkian flew in with a high level team that includes Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi, Defence Minister Brig Gen Aziz Nasirzadeh and the governor of Sistan Baluchestan.
Over two days the delegation met President Asif Ali Zardari, the prime minister and military chiefs to discuss trade corridors, border security and energy links.
The venue mattered as much as the agenda.
In last week, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told parliament his forces had “neutralised” Nur Khan during Operation Sindoor.
Saturday’s smooth touchdown and live TV coverage handed Islamabad an easy rebuttal.
Officials called it proof the facility never went offline and that Pakistan’s air defence shield remains intact.
Islamabad and Tehran issued a joint note pledging deeper economic integration and coordinated counter terror patrols.
Working groups will draft a roadmap for barter trade and upgrade the Mand-Pishin border marketplace within three months.
Analysts say Pakistan’s ability to host a neighbouring head of state at a supposedly “destroyed” base is a diplomatic win that blunts India’s Sindoor talking points.
For now, the Nur Khan Airbase welcome sends a clear message.
The runway is operational, Pakistan’s narrative stands, and regional diplomacy is taxiing for take off.
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