PM Shehbaz seeks barter trade revival with Russia in meeting with Putin

In a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif emphasised the revival and expansion of bilateral trade between the two countries.

The two dignitaries met in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit.

The prime minister, in his televised opening remarks at the meeting, recalled how Pakistan and Russia used to have bilateral trade and a barter system in the 1950s and 1960s when Pakistan used to import machinery and export leather and other commodities to Russia.

“Currently, our bilateral trade stands at around $1 billion, which could be expanded by overcoming financial and banking matters,” he said, adding that both countries will equally benefit from the move.

The premier expressed his pleasure to meet the Russian leader and recalled their earlier interaction in Samarkand.

He congratulated President Putin on his re-election and expressed the hope that the Russian Federation would achieve further progress under his leadership.

The prime minister said bilateral relations have been on a positive trajectory for the last several years, which is a matter of “great comfort.”

He expressed his readiness to work closely with the Russian president to further cement bilateral ties and viewed that both countries had lot to do by benefiting from President Putin’s experience and leadership.

The premier thanked the Russian government for sending an oil shipment to Pakistan in the recent past and expressed the desire to move further in this regard.

He said Pakistan-Russian ties were not driven or impacted by any geopolitical situation as both countries had very old business relations.

In his remarks, Russian President Putin also mentioned their earlier interaction in Samarkand on the sidelines of the SCO summit in which they had discussed the ways to further improve bilateral relations.

He said Pakistan and Russia enjoyed cordial relations which had improved due to the trade linkages.

Putin said both countries could enhance their cooperation in energy and agriculture and expressed his readiness to promote cooperation with Pakistan in the field of food security.