Pakistan is not in a position to entertain Iran’s desire to join the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project due to strong opposition from its longtime allies, the United States, and Saudi Arabia, local analysts reckon.

Axar.az reports citing AA that, Iran's ambassador to Pakistan, Mehdi Honardoost, said last week his country was eager to join the CPEC, which is part of Beijing’s ambitious One Belt One Road project, a network of infrastructural projects to connect China to the world.

"We believe CPEC is a very important and giant project which can greatly impact peace and cooperation among countries in the region," Honardoost said while addressing the members of Pakistan-Iran Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the capital Islamabad.

The ambassador went on to argue that the CPEC would not reach its final destination without Tehran’s support, especially in the energy and transportation sectors.

"Practically, there is zero chance of Tehran’s inclusion in the project in given circumstances whereby the Islamic Republic is facing ever-increasing sanctions from the U.S.”, Dr. Shahid Hasan Siddiqui, a Karachi-based economist, told Anadolu Agency.

Islamabad, already under mounting pressures from money laundering watchdogs, could not afford any further isolation by "displeasing" Washington and Riyadh, he went on to say.

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a global terror-financing watchdog, put Pakistan on its gray list in June 2018 after Saudi Arabia and China did not oppose a U.S.-backed move against Islamabad.

"Pakistan has not been able to materialize the multibillion-dollar Pak-Iran Gas Pipeline project in the last 25 years due to the U.S. pressure, though Tehran has completed its part a long time ago," Siddiqui said.

"This is more than sufficient to figure out the fate of Tehran’s desire."

Abdul Khalique Ali, a Karachi-based political and security analyst shared a similar view.

"The [Pakistan-Iran] gas pipeline project could meet Pakistan’s growing energy demands but the U.S. pressure did not let Islamabad fulfill its commitment with Tehran. How can we expect a miracle this time," Ali told Anadolu Agency.

Singed in 2014, the $64 billion CPEC project will connect northwest China to Pakistan's southwestern Gwadar port through a network of roads, railways, and pipelines to transport cargo, oil, and gas.

This will provide the shortest route to Chinese cargo destined for the Middle East, Central Asia, and Africa.

In a tit-for-tat move, Iran, India, and Afghanistan signed a multibillion-dollar deal in 2016 to develop Iran’s southern Chabahar Port.

The three countries also signed a three-way transit agreement to extend the trade route to several landlocked Central Asian countries.

"Iran is strategically a very important country for Pakistan. Its inclusion in the CPEC will definitely serve the purpose of regional connectivity," Siddiqui said.

"But the problem is that the current conditions are not in favor of that," he added.

Siddiqui rejected the idea that Chabahar will be a competitor to the Gwadar Port, he said the two ports were not set to rival one another -- and would, in fact, complement each other.