Russia on Thursday expressed interest in supplying gas to Pakistan through pipelines, saying some infrastructure is already in place for the ambitious project.
Moscow also expressed its willingness to work with Islamabad to “solve” the Afghanistan issue.
This happened during a meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Russian President Vladimir Putin in the historic city of Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit.
Putin, his Chinese, Turkish and Iranian counterparts, the prime ministers of Pakistan and India and other leaders have gathered in Samarkand to attend the annual meeting of heads of state of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
Shahbaz Sharif arrived in Samarkand on Thursday morning to attend the summit. He is scheduled to hold important meetings with several world leaders on the sidelines of the summit.
A meeting with Putin
During their meeting on Thursday afternoon, President Putin warmed to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif as the two shared ironclad tactics.
Photos released by the Pakistan Prime Minister’s Office and the Russian Presidency show Putin warmly welcoming Shahbaz Sharif, with both leaders beaming with big smiles.
According to reports, the two leaders discussed bilateral relations and the regional situation.
A readout of the meeting shared by the Russian presidency said Putin raised issues related to floods, bilateral relations, trade, energy and the regional situation.
“I would like to begin our meeting by expressing my condolences for the loss of life caused by natural disasters, unprecedented floods in Pakistan,” Putin said, adding that Moscow was ready to help the Pakistani people.
“We have dispatched the necessary humanitarian aid there, and we stand ready to assist you in arranging relief for the flood victims.”
Shehbaz Sharif thanked Putin for his solidarity with the flood victims and his generous assistance. He shared details of the devastating effects of climate-induced disaster.
The two leaders expressed satisfaction over the “stable” pace and “positive” pace of bilateral relations between the two countries.
The Russian President expressed regret that the trade between the two countries has been somewhat disrupted due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic. But he expressed hope that an intergovernmental meeting in Karachi later this year would come up with a positive road map to get out of the trade slump.
“There are things we need to work on, and we see good prospects in many sectors,” Putin stressed, including railways, transport and energy.
He said that there are very interesting and large-scale projects, namely the Pakistan Stream Gas Pipeline project, which involves building the infrastructure required for the transmission of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
The Russian president noted that the aim of the project is to “supply pipeline gas from Russia to Pakistan”.
“It is also possible, given the fact that some infrastructure already exists in Russia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.”
Prime Minister Shehbaz expressed Islamabad’s commitment to work with Russia to further expand and strengthen cooperation between the two countries in all areas of mutual benefit, including food security, trade and investment, energy, defense and security. Repeated
The two leaders also discussed regional issues, especially Afghanistan.
Putin bluntly told Shahbaz, “We need to resolve the Afghan issue.
“There are problems of political stability,” he said, highlighting the hope that Moscow’s relationship with the Afghan people could solve the problem.
“I also have in mind Pakistan’s ability to influence the situation there.”
He further said that apart from this there are many interesting projects which can be implemented.
“We will do everything in our power to continue working with a positive spirit,” he said.
Shahbaz Sharif appreciated Russia’s constructive role in Afghanistan and said that both Pakistan and Russia have an important role in a peaceful and stable Afghanistan.
He further said that it is important to speed up the pace of international engagement on Afghanistan and reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to support all regional and international efforts for stability in Afghanistan.
It was Shehbaz’s first meeting with Putin after succeeding Imran Khan, who met the Russian president in February, a day before Moscow invaded Ukraine.
Arrival of Shahbaz in Uzbekistan
Earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz was received at the airport by Prime Minister of Uzbekistan Abdullah Aripov, Minister of Public Education Bakhtiar Saidov, Governor of Samarkand Erkanjan Turdimov and Deputy Foreign Minister Ghirat Fuzilov.
The Prime Minister visited Khizr Complex and the tomb of Uzbekistan’s founding leader Islam Karimov in Samarkand. Defense Minister Khawaja Asif and Finance Minister Miftah Ismail also accompanied him.
After that, he met the President of Tajikistan, Imam Ali Rahman.
The meeting focused on strengthening Pak-Uzbek relations in various fields for the benefit of both brotherly countries.
The Prime Minister also met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Samarkand.
The Prime Minister will meet other world leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Kyrgyz President Sudir Japarov.
Immediately after arriving at the Samarkand Airport, the Prime Minister will go to the Hazrat Khizr Complex where he will visit the Khizr Mosque and visit the shrine of the first President of Uzbekistan, Islam Karimov.
The Prime Minister will attend a banquet hosted by the Uzbek President in honor of the visiting leaders.
