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They were speaking at a one-day international conference on Pakistan-Russia Strategic Relations organized by Strategic Vision Institute (SVI) in Islamabad.
President SVI, Dr Zafar Iqbal Cheema in his remarks said Pakistan and Russia have been trying to open a new chapter in bilateral ties and for this they have signed a number of agreements and MoUs in various sectors. He, however, noted that bilateral trade volume between the two countries is too meager.
He noted that Pakistan with the help of Russia, Iran and China is trying to bring peace and stability to Afghanistan.
Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua in her views said that Pakistan plays a key role for ensuring peace and prosperity in the South Asian region. She added that Pakistan and Russia have direct interest in Afghanistan, adding that peace and stability in Afghanistan would benefit both Pakistan and Russia.
The official termed Russia as important regional and strategic partner of Pakistan. She said Pakistan and Russia are also developing their army to military ties.
Tehmina Janjua said that Pakistan is part and parcel of Moscow framework and welcomed Russia’s role in Afghan peace process.
She also appreciated Russia’s investment in Pakistan’s infrastructure building and energy projects. She added that Pakistan desires to see Russia joining the list of Pakistan’s closest strategic partners and friends.
Dr Irina Nikolaevna Sarenko, Senior Research Associate at Institute of Oriental Studies, Russia Academy of Sciences Moscow expressing her views said that Moscow, Tehran and Islamabad have been cooperating with each other at multilateral forums. She said that the three countries share same point of view on number of world issues at the UN and SCO.
She noted that US president Donald Trump’s policy has helped to create Eurasian partnership. The scholar said that Russia supports China–Pakistan Economic Corridor project and views it positively.
Dr Irina said Russia’s cooperation with Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and China is an important factor for stability in south and central Asia.
She added that Russia’s presence in Pakistan’s energy market is beneficial for the country.
Another speaker former ambassador Arif Kamal in his remarks said that Russia is a major power in the world. He said that the US which has lost its power in the world is looking for proxies in different parts of the world.
He viewed that Russia will have stronger regional stake in the region. He noted that Russia is against the notion change in governments in Iran and Syria. He said that Russia unlike the US is trying to build bridges between Iran and Arab states to bring stability in the region.
The analyst said Russia is also promoting peace in Syria and wants to give more space to Iran in the region.
Dr Yulia Sveshnikova, Consultant at Center for Political Studies of Russia said Moscow desires to have stronger ties with Pakistan. She said that Russia would keep Iran nuclear agreement intact despite the withdrawal of a country from the deal.
She was confident that Iran-Russia ties will improve in future.
Dr Hamid Ali Khan another speaker said Russia is an important stakeholder in Afghanistan which believes that presence of Daesh in the country is a direct threat to central Asian states and security apparatus of Russia in the region.
He added that Iran believes that the US because of its designs cannot afford to leave this region and will remain present in the area.
He said Iran thinks that talks should continue in Afghanistan and the government in Afghanistan should have representation from all groups. The analyst said Iran, however, is still not friend of Taliban as they cannot forget the killings of their diplomats in Afghanistan.
Air Vice Marshal (Retd) Faaz Amir chairing the session said that closer cooperation among Iran, Pakistan and Russia is inevitable for regional peace and stability.
He added that Russia enjoys good ties with Iran. He said that Russia is helping other countries of the world to achieve peace and stability.
Expressing his views, Russian Ambassador to Pakistan Alexey Yurevish Dedov said Pakistan is an important partner of Russia. He added that both countries are cooperating with each other for achieving peace in Afghanistan.
He said that Russia-Pakistan energy cooperation would further strengthen the bilateral ties. He said that both countries are also making efforts to start direct banking ties.
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