Moscow and Islamabad in talks for Putin’s first visit to Pakistan

Moscow and Islamabad are in talks to finalize the plan for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Pakistan this year, a media report said on Sunday.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has already extended a formal invitation to Putin, The Express Tribune newspaper said in its report, adding that Imran Khan reiterated the invitation during their phone conversation earlier this month.

The Pakistani newspaper said that Putin’s visit had been in discussion for the past two years, but failed to materialize due to various reasons, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the report, Moscow also wants there to be “major projects” or other initiatives that the Russian president would announce when he finally leaves for Pakistan.

Last year, Pakistan and Russia signed an agreement to build a 1,100 km gas pipeline from Port Qasim in Karachi to Lahore.

The Pakistani media report said that the signing of Pakistan’s steam pipeline in July last year has improved the prospects of Putin’s visit to Pakistan.

Pakistan is keen for President Putin to inaugurate the $2 billion-plus gas pipeline project and wants Russian companies to install the gas pipeline from Karachi to Kasur.

This project, according to the newspaper, is a flagship project that Moscow and Islamabad intend to undertake and enter a new era of bilateral ties. The project had not only economic but also strategic importance for Pakistan, the Tribune report added, citing officials familiar with the development.

He further said that Pakistan wanted to expand ties with Russia as part of its efforts to diversify its foreign policy options.

(Only the headline and image in this report may have been modified by Business Standard staff; all other content is auto-generated from a syndicated source.)

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