ISLAMABAD: Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have discreetly exchanged letters, reported a local media outlet on Sunday, adding the two leaders agreed to strengthen bilateral relations between their countries.
Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan repeatedly blamed the downfall of his administration on his decision to visit Moscow to meet the Russian president, saying the no-trust vote against him was part of a grand international scheme which was instigated by the development.
Quoting an unnamed foreign ministry official, The Express Tribune said the letters were exchanged after Sharif's election to the top political office of the country, though the correspondence was kept away from the media glare to avoid public attention.
"The official, who requested not to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue, said Putin expressed the desire to deepen cooperation between the two countries," the newspaper reported. "PM Shehbaz wrote back to Putin thanking him for his felicitation message and expressed similar sentiments on bilateral ties between the two countries as well as cooperation on Afghanistan."
The report added the messages between the two leaders indicated that the relationship building process between Pakistan and Russia was continuing under the present political administration.
"Foreign office officials said resetting ties with Russia was a decision taken by the state a long time back keeping in view the changing regional and international alignments," wrote The Express Tribune. "That process, officials said, would continue but without much fanfare for some time given the Russia-Ukraine crisis."
The Russian embassy in Islamabad had also congratulated Sharif on becoming Pakistan's new prime minister earlier this month while hoping for further strengthening of bilateral relationship.
Local media reports discreet exchange of letters between Russian president, Pakistani PM
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Local media reports discreet exchange of letters between Russian president, Pakistani PM
- Foreign ministry sources say the two leaders expressed hope for stronger bilateral ties
- Pakistani officials call it their state policy to nurture wide-ranging relations with Moscow
Three Afghan migrants die crossing into Iran as UN warns of new displacement toward Pakistan
- UNHCR says 1.8 million Afghans were forced to return from Iran this year, straining Afghanistan’s resources
- Rights groups warn forced refugee returns risk harm as Afghanistan faces food shortages and climate shocks
KABUL: Three Afghans died from exposure in freezing temperatures in the western province of Herat while trying to illegally enter Iran, a local army official said on Saturday.
“Three people who wanted to illegally cross the Iran-Afghanistan border have died because of the cold weather,” the Afghan army official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
He added that a shepherd was also found dead in the mountainous area of Kohsan from the cold.
The migrants were part of a group that attempted to cross into Iran on Wednesday and was stopped by Afghan border forces.
“Searches took place on Wednesday night, but the bodies were only found on Thursday,” the army official said.
More than 1.8 million Afghans were forced to return to Afghanistan by the Iranian authorities between January and the end of November 2025, according to the latest figures from the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR), which said that the majority were “forced and coerced returns.”
“These mass returns in adverse circumstances have strained Afghanistan’s already overstretched resources and services” which leads to “risks of onward and new displacement, including return movements back into Pakistan and Iran and onward,” UNHCR posted on its site dedicated to Afghanistan’s situation.
This week, Amnesty International called on countries to stop forcibly returning people to Afghanistan, citing a “real risk of serious harm for returnees.”
Hit by two major earthquakes in recent months and highly vulnerable to climate change, Afghanistan faces multiple challenges.
It is subject to international sanctions particularly due to the exclusion of women from many jobs and public places, described by the UN as “gender apartheid.”
More than 17 million people in the country are facing acute food insecurity, the UN World Food Program said Tuesday.
