Pakistani PM to visit Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin

Pakistani PM to visit Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin
February 21, 2022, 5:24 pm

Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan (File photo: official Facebook page)

The Swiss Info reported, citing Reuters, Islamabad confirmed on Monday, Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan will fly to Moscow this week to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. It is the first trip by a Pakistani leader in two decades.

The report said that the two-day visit, starting on Wednesday, was planned before the current crisis over Ukraine.

Pakistan's foreign office said in a statement: "During the Summit meeting, the two leaders will review the entire array of bilateral relations including energy cooperation." It added that Khan and Putin will also discuss issues including the situation in Afghanistan.

According to the report, relations between Pakistan and Russia were minimal for years as Islamabad sided with the United States in the Cold War and was given Major Non-NATO Ally status by Washington after U.S. forces invaded Afghanistan in 2001.

Russian president Vladimir Putin (File photo: Facebook)

In recent years, however, relations between the United States and Pakistan have deteriorated and there has been a thawing between Moscow and Islamabad, which has seen the planning of projects in the gas and energy fields.

In an interview published on Monday, Khan played down the timing of the visit, and any effect it would have on Pakistan's relations with the West.

Four killed and 15 Injured in blast in Pakistan’s southwestern Quetta city

He told Newsweek Pakistan: "This visit was planned well before the emergence of the current phase of Ukrainian crisis ... I received the invitation from President Putin much earlier."

Source: swissinfo

Damascus bookstores long for customers as economic crisis bites purchasing power Joe Biden extends national emergency beyond March 1