NewsJuly 06, 2019
Imran Khan to attend Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok
Islamabad: President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation extended an invitation to Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan to attend the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok scheduled for September 4 to September 6. He invited PM Khan during the 19th meeting of the Council of Head of States (CHS) of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Bishkek.
Others such as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are also expected to attend the forum.
PM Khan and President Putin have known to have various informal meetings outside of the conference. PM Khan was invited as a special guest to the conference.
Those observing the SCO said that Putin was seen to be interacting with PM Khan the most out of all those who were present and the Prime Minister and President Putin sitting together during lunch as well.
The EEF was created by the Decree of President Putin in 2015, serving the purpose of opening talks about key economic issues in the world including the development of new technological and industrial sectors as well as regional assimilation. It also aims to deal with the economic challenges faced by the international community.The invitation came in a matter of days after the news about PM Khan’s official state visit to the United States (US) on July 22 became public.
In an interview that took place in June for a Russian news agency, PM Khan maintained that Pakistan and Russia will be continuing their military cooperation including the joint drills known as ‘Dhruzba’ since 2016.On another occasion, Prime Minister Khan stated, “It is refreshing that we have developed our contacts with Russia, and they are developing all the time”.
In May, the Russian embassy stated that Pakistan is an important Russian ally due to its role in regional politics, its geostrategic position and influence in the Muslim world.Prime Minister Khan also pointed out that during the 60s and 70s, Pakistan had an alliance with the US while India was aligned to the Russian Federation, but this is no longer the case since times have changed. He said now that the Cold War has presided, Pakistan must focus on decreasing its tensions with India before buying arms and importing weaponry from Russia. The PM also talked about improving trade with the help of the Russian Federation when he commented, “Russia is an energy-surplus country. Pakistan has shortages on energy, so we hope to talk on those areas. We already are. Apart from defense, we also want to improve our trade in other areas with Russia.”
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk
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