Monitoring Desk
MOSCOW: Paklistan’s Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Monday said that Pakistan wanted to enhance cooperation with Russia in areas of trade, economy, security, defence, counter-terrorism, as well as cultural, educational, and people-to-people contacts.
Addressing a joint news conference with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, FM Bilawal said strengthening relations with Russia remains an essential priority for Pakistan. He said we believe that Pak-Russia relations serve our national interests and contribute to regional and global stability and security.
FM Bilawal said Pakistan views Russia as essential in West-South and Central Asia. He said Russia and Pakistan have good cooperation in Afghanistan, and they want to continue cooperation with Russia in realizing common goals of stability and peace in Afghanistan.
The Foreign Minister said they discussed bilateral cooperation at multilateral fora and firmly believed that all conflicts can be resolved peacefully and there are no hurdles that diplomacy cannot surmount, and the Ukraine conflict is no exception.
Pak-Russia bilateral cooperation
He noted that developing countries like Pakistan are facing adverse effects regarding the economic impact of this conflict. He expressed confidence that the strong tradition of diplomacy of Russia will help achieve a peaceful resolution of the conflict.
He thanked Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov for inviting him to visit Russia and reiterated Islamabad’s commitment to deepening relations with Moscow.
Russian FM Sergey Lavrov said Russia and Pakistan would continue their efforts for peace in the region.
He said both countries had converged views on many regional and international issues.
The Russian Foreign Minister said the elimination of terrorism from the region is directly linked with Afghanistan. We have agreed to utilize the capacities of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, especially its contact group on Afghanistan, for this purpose.
Russian FM condemns Peshawar mosque attack
Condemning the terrorist attack in Peshawar mosque on Monday, Sergei Lavrov stressed that the fight against terrorism should be more active worldwide without double standards.
Expressing satisfaction over the current status of military cooperation between the two nations, the Russian Foreign Minister said we would continue to support the regular military contacts, military training, including joint exercises, and anti-terrorism capacities.
He said we have also planned to build cultural, humanitarian, and educational links.
