Pakistan, Russia discuss international security at 16th Strategic Stability Talks in Moscow

Pakistani and Russian officials discussed international security and global stability at high-level talks in Moscow, the Foreign Office (FO) said on Tuesday.

In a statement issued today, FO spokesman and additional secretary Tahir Andrabi and Russia’s deputy foreign minister “discussed current issues of international security and global stability” a day ago when they co-chaired the 16th meeting of the Russian-Pakistani Advisory Group on Strategic Stability in Moscow.

It said the two sides had a “confident and detailed exchange of views” with discussions on issues related to arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation.

“The meeting confirmed the affinity between the approaches of Russia and Pakistan on most of the issues discussed. The parties confirmed their intention to continue such interaction and coordination in the relevant international forums,” the FO said, adding that it was agreed to hold the 17th meeting of the advisory group next year in Islamabad.

The development came as coordination between Pakistan and Russia continues across various fronts. Last week, Pakistan’s ambassador to Russia Faisal Niaz Tirmizi said Pakistan planned to increase oil imports from Russia due to the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz as “Islamabad looks for alternatives.”

Read: The government sees fuel from Russia and Nigeria

The envoy stated that demand for Russian energy resources had increased amid the crisis surrounding the strategic waterway. “We produce about 10% of the energy resources we need ourselves, while the rest is imported, mainly from the countries of the Persian Gulf. A serious crisis has arisen, so we started looking for alternatives,” he said.

Tirmizi stated: “We are now also considering building a pipeline from Central Asia and Russia at some point. This could mean connecting the Eurasian space through roads, railways, pipelines, humanitarian contacts and academic ties,” he said, adding: “This is what we are really striving for now.”

Last month, Russia had also appreciated Pakistan’s constructive role in facilitating Iran-US dialogue. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar held a telephone conversation with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, discussing “cooperation in multilateral fora in support of international peace and security”.

Read more: Pakistan gains access to the Russian fish market

In February, Russian President Vladimir Putin also confirmed that he is ready to strengthen cooperation with Pakistan to fight terrorism. This followed a suicide attack on an Islamabad Imambargah that killed at least 31 people and injured dozens of others.

In January, Putin had hailed the growing relationship between Moscow and Pakistan as “mutually beneficial” with cooperation expanding across sectors.

The Russian Embassy in Pakistan had quoted Putin as saying: “We continue close cooperation with Pakistan. Pakistan is a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which is the region’s largest regional organization in terms of economic, technical and human resources. Relations between Russia and Pakistan are mutually beneficial in the truest sense.”