BEIJING: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Tuesday met Russian President Vladimir Putin here wherein the two leaders emphasized exploring the ways to further enhance bilateral cooperation in multiple spheres, including trade and defence.

In the meeting held on the sidelines of the Belt and Road Forum, the two leaders stressed the need to strengthen bilateral cooperation in diverse fields, besides discussing matters related to regional peace and security.

Russian President Putin received Prime Minister Kakar before they held a meeting that encompassed bilateral, regional, and international affairs.

In his opening remarks, Prime Minister Kakar said Pakistan and Russia had a convergence of interests on the issue of terrorism, and called for enhanced cooperation and a common approach among the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan.

He said the neighbouring countries should be the foremost to take the initiative and cooperate in the fields of intelligence, defence and counter-terrorism.

Coming to bilateral cooperation, Prime Minister Kakar said Pakistan was an energy-deficient country of 240 million population. Pakistan’s energy minister had recently attended an Energy Week event in Russia where he had a “fruitful and constructive engagement” with the Russian team.

The Russian team had come up with concrete proposals for enhancing energy cooperation, he added.

Citing his previous visit to Russia as senator, the prime minister said he was “mesmerized” by the Russian architecture particularly representing Christianity and churches. He said both countries were also close in terms of cultural and ethical values which were not popular beyond that region.