ISLAMABAD: Pakistani foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi left for Moscow on Wednesday for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Council of Foreign Ministers (SCO-CFM) and said he would discuss with his Russian counterpart the construction of a gas pipeline due to be built by Russia and stretching 1,100 km (680 miles) from Lahore to the port city of Karachi.
US sanctions against Russian state conglomerate Rostec, as well as a dispute over North-South pipeline transport fees, have held up the $2 billion project since it was signed in 2015.
The North-South pipeline would be the biggest infrastructure deal by Russia since the early 1970s, when Soviet engineers constructed the Pakistan Steel Mills industrial complex.
“North South gas pipeline is a project that can greatly benefit Pakistan,” Qureshi said in a video message before leaving for Moscow. “I am hopeful that we will discuss it and there is a possibility of progress.”
He said a meeting had been set up with the foreign minister of Russia, adding: “I believe that in the coming days there is a bright possibility that our ties with Russia will grow. I see the possibility of a long term, multidimensional partnership.”
Qureshi said Pakistan would also hold discussions with the heads of central asian nations to see how “volume of trade” could be increased and the economic prosperity of the region promoted through Pakistan’s southwestern Gwadar port, which Pakistan plans, with China’s help, to turn into a trans-shipment hub and megaport to be built alongside special economic zones from which export-focused industries will ship goods worldwide.
Qureshi also said the SCO meetings in Moscow would bring together countries with a “deep interest” in peace and stability in Afghanistan where talks between the Taliban and the Kabul government are about to start to find a solution to a 19-year-long civil war.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a security grouping comprising Russia, China and four ex-Soviet states in Central Asia. India and Pakistan joined as full members in 2017.
“Since becoming a [SCO] member in 2017, Pakistan has been actively contributing in working toward achieving SCO’s multi-sectoral agenda through participation in various SCO mechanisms,” the foreign office said in a statement.
Initially focused on regional security, including border conflicts, terrorism and militant Islam, the SCO’s activities have expanded to cover economics and trade, transport and law enforcement. Security and economic cooperation remain priorities.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization Council of Foreign Ministers will go on from September 9-10.