Islamabad, Oct 20: Pakistan Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Jamali has cut short his visit to Iran by a day, owing to pressing domestic engagements. Jamali, who is scheduled to leave for Tehran tomorrow, would now return on October 22, instead of October 23, official media reported here.

Jamali's visit will focus on bilateral talks with the Iranian leadership, including President Syed Mohammad Khatami and supreme Iranian leader Ayatollah Syed Ali Khamnei besides addressing the Pakistani community in Iran. The multi-billion dollar Iran-India gas pipe-line project to be laid through Pakistan was expected to come up for discussions during Jamali's talks with Iranian leaders.

While Pakistan continues to support providing guarantees for the safety of the pipeline project, expected to provide 700 million dollars of royalties every year, the project failed to take off as India evinced little interest in it. Pakistan and Iran have strained relations in the past, inspite of the fact that both are Islamic countries and close neighbours. Pakistan, a majority Sunni state had differences with Iran, which is predominantly Shia, over Afghanistan.

Also, increasing clashes between Sunni-Shia sectarian extremists groups in Pakistan and the emerging close relations between India and Iran continue to cast a shadow on the ties between Islamabad and Tehran.