ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is embarking on a two-day official visit to Moscow tomorrow.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov invited FM Bhutto to visit Moscow, Foreign Office said in a statement issued today.
“Bilawal Bhutto will hold official talks with Russian officials to deliberate upon the entire spectrum of bilateral relations and exchange views on the regional and international issues of mutual interest,” press release added.
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto is visiting Moscow a few days after Pakistan and Russia signed an agreement for the supply of crude oil from March this year.
Pakistan and Russia signed the bilateral agreement at the conclusion of the Pakistan-Russia Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation in Islamabad.
In March this year, Pakistan would starting buying Russian oil while the payment will be made in the currencies of friendly countries.
Last week, a high-profile Russian delegation led by Moscow’s energy minister visited Pakistan and discussed bilateral energy cooperation along with supply of crude oil.
Russian President Putin also sent a message to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in which Putin said he views Pakistan as Russia’s key partner in South Asia and the Islamic world.
Through the special message, the Russian energy minister conveyed that President Putin referred to “Pakistan as Russia’s important partner in South Asia and the Islamic World [and] reiterated Russia’s strong interest to deepen the bilateral relationship”.
I am an experienced writer, analyst, and author. My exposure in English journalism spans more than 28 years. In the past, I have been working with daily The Muslim (Lahore Bureau), daily Business Recorder (Lahore/Islamabad Bureaus), Daily Times, Islamabad, daily The Nation (Lahore and Karachi). With daily The Nation, I have served as Resident Editor, Karachi. Since 2009, I have been working as a Freelance Writer/Editor for American organizations.
