ISLAMABAD – Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday left for Russia on a two-day visit (February 23-24).
Prime Minister Khan is visiting Russia on the special invitation of President Vladimir Putin. During the visit, PM Khan will meet President Putin and many other important personalities.
In the first Russia visit by a Pakistani prime minister in more than two decades, PM Khan will be accompanied by a high-level delegation, including members of his cabinet.
During a bilateral summit, PM Khan and President Putin will review the entire array of bilateral relations, including energy cooperation, a statement from the Foreign Office said.
“They will also have a wide-ranging exchange of views on major regional and international issues, including Islamophobia and the situation in Afghanistan,” the statement added.
The statement said, “The two countries enjoy friendly relations marked by mutual respect, trust, and convergence of views on a range of international and regional issues.”
Experts say that PM Khan’s Russia visit will kickoff an array of bilateral relations, including energy cooperation.
On invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin (@KremlinRussia_E), Prime Minister @ImranKhanPTI, along with high-level delegation including the members of his cabinet, will embark on a two-day official visit to Russia today. 🇵🇰🇷🇺 pic.twitter.com/sU2yiogaC0
— Prime Minister's Office (@PakPMO) February 23, 2022
Islamabad and Moscow will also have a wide-ranging exchange of views on major regional and international issues including the situation in Afghanistan.
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Energy Minister Hammad Azhar, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry, Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar and advisers Abdul Razak Dawood and Moeed Yusuf will accompany the premier to Moscow.
Schedule for PM Imran Khan’s visit
PM Khan and the Pakistani delegation will land in Moscow today and the Russian deputy foreign minister will welcome them at the airport.PM would be presented a guard of honor by a contingent of the Russian armed forces.
On February 24, Khan will lay a wreath at the monument of World War II heroes and then meet the Russian president at 1 pm the same day.
At the meeting, matters of mutual interest, bilateral relations, and other issues will be discussed. Later, PM Khan will hold a meeting with the deputy prime minister of Russia and discuss energy-related matters.
He will also meet the business leaders, interact with members of the Pakistani media and visit the Islamic Centre in Moscow. A meeting between the prime minister and the Grand Mufti of Russia is also scheduled.
PM Imran Khan will leave for Pakistan on Thursday night (February 24).
At the meetings, PM Khan will reiterate his resolve to complete the Pakistan Stream Gas Pipeline (PSGP) project, the sources said, adding the project is very important for Islamabad and the county is committed to the speedy completion of the project.
The previous visit of any Pakistani premier to Russia was in March 1999 when then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited the country. There have since been multiple informal pull-aside meetings between the Russian president and Pakistani prime minister at different forums.
Meanwhile, Khan summoned a meeting of the Central Executive Committee of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) ahead of his maiden visit to Russia.
PM’s visit comes amid the heightening of tensions between Russia and Ukraine as Putin deployed military forces into two breakaway regions of eastern Ukraine.
Prime Minister speaking about the visit said the trip was planned well before the emergence of the current phase of the Ukrainian crisis. He also mentioned that he received Putin’s invitation much earlier.
Pakistan reaffirms support for Ukraine ahead of PM Imran’s visit to Russia
Negating any connection amid a tense situation, he said this doesn’t concern us, as we have a bilateral relationship with Russia and we really want to strengthen it.
Earlier in 2021, Islamabad and Moscow formally signed an amended intergovernmental agreement for a flagship pipeline project due to be carried out by Russia to join Punjab with the country’s financial capital Karachi.
The flagship project is previously known as the North-South Pipeline and is now called the Pakistan Stream Gas Pipeline Project which will deliver imported liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Pakistan’s coastal regions to industrial areas in Punjab.
