Saudi FM, Pakistan army chief discuss strengthening security cooperation

In this photo released by Saudi foreign ministry on July 28, 2021, Saudi FM Prince Faisal bin Farhan (left) meets Pakistan Army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa at GHQ in Rawalpindi. (Photo courtesy: @KSAMOFA/Twitter)
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Updated 29 July 2021
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Saudi FM, Pakistan army chief discuss strengthening security cooperation

  • Prince Faisal assures Gen. Bajwa of ‘unflinching support,’ appreciates Pakistan’s efforts for regional peace — ISPR 
  • Saudi foreign minister was in Islamabad to review progress in various fields of bilateral cooperation

ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud, has discussed strengthening security cooperation with Pakistan Army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa, the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Wednesday.

Prince Faisal arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday for a day-long visit to review with Pakistani officials progress in various fields of bilateral cooperation. 

It was the Saudi minister’s second state visit to Pakistan in a year. He was last in Islamabad in December 2020.
He met Bajwa at the Pakistan Army headquarters in Rawalpindi.
“They reviewed bilateral relations between the two brotherly countries, and the meeting dealt with strengthening joint cooperation to maintain security and stability,” the Saudi foreign ministry said in a series of tweets.

The Pakistani military’s media wing, ISPR, said in a statement after the visit that Gen. Bajwa and Prince Faisal had also discussed the regional security situation, including the Afghan peace process.

“Matters of bilateral interest, evolving security situation of the region, including Afghanistan Peace Process and collaboration for regional peace and connectivity were discussed during the meeting,” the ISPR said, adding that the Saudi FM had assured Pakistan of Saudi Arabia’s “unflinching support” and “appreciated sincere efforts and role Pakistan played for promoting peace and stability in the region.”


Pakistan to sign preferential trade agreement with Russia during Sharif’s upcoming visit — envoy

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Pakistan to sign preferential trade agreement with Russia during Sharif’s upcoming visit — envoy

  • Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif plans to visit ‌Russia ​on ‌March ⁠3-5, ​Russian state news ⁠agency RIA reported this month
  • Islamabad will also organize Russia-Pakistan Business Forum, which will have participation from more than 100 Pakistani firms

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is seeking to sign a preferential trade agreement (PTA) with Russia to boost bilateral trade volume during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s upcoming visit to Moscow, Pakistan’s ambassador to Moscow has said.

Pakistani Ambassador Faisal Niaz Tirmizi said this during the Moscow-Islamabad media forum, which was hosted by Sputnik ahead of Sharif’s scheduled visit to Moscow next month.

Pakistan and Russia, once Cold War rivals, have strengthened ties in recent years. In 2023, Islamabad began purchasing discounted Russian crude oil banned from European markets over Ukraine war, and also received first shipment of liquefied petroleum gas from Moscow.

The volume of Russia-Pakistan trade rose more than 100 percent to $1.81 billion from July 2023 till June 2024, though it experienced slight contraction in the last fiscal year, according to officials.

“Once the prime minister is here, we will start the process of signing PTA with the Eurasian Economic Union and the Russian Federation,” Tirmizi said at the forum.

Pakistan and Russia are members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a Eurasian political, economic and security organization, and have had sustained high-level interactions and institutional mechanisms in recent years.

PM Sharif plans to visit ‌Russia ​on ‌March ⁠3-5, ​Russian state news ⁠agency RIA reported this month, citing ⁠a ‌Pakistani ‌official.

Tirmizi said Russia-Pakistan ties were not only strategic or bilateral, but they had commercial, people-to-people and business dimensions as well.

“I am very happy to announce that Pakistan is also organizing the second Russia-Pakistan Business Forum during this visit,” he said.

“Over a hundred companies, hundred leading companies are coming from Pakistan to interact with the Russian partners.”