Russia plans to sanction $500m to upgrade PSM

Putting some weight behind the perception of some international relations’ experts that the United States and Russia had got engaged in a new Cold War; Moscow on Monday made public its plans to allocate a grant worth $500 million for the dollar-starved country, Pakistan. Being disenchanted with its non-NATO allies in Washington in the post-May 2 events, Islamabad seems to have enhanced its diplomatic contacts with Russians with President Zardari and Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar having paid triumphant visits of Moscow in May 2011 and February 2012, respectively.
Also, two separate delegations headed by Sindh Chief Minister and the President of Federation of Pakistani Chambers of Commerce and Industry have been in Moscow and Saint-Petersburg most recently.
In addition, underway are the special agreements between Moscow and Islamabad on the construction of a South Asian Electricity Trade and Development Project CASA-l000. On the other hand, Moscow is critical of the US and its western allies for installing a missile shield in the Eastern Europe, as well as launching an international propaganda against Russian strongman Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, one the five hot candidates for March 4 presidential elections.
Conceived by the 40th American President Ronald Wilson Reagan, during his reign ranging from 1981 to 1989, the Russians deem the missile shield as a direct threat to their security.
The $500 million aid, Russia announced for Pakistan on Monday, would be spent for upgrading of Pakistani Steel Mills, one of the loss-making Public Sector Enterprises, which was originally set up by the Soviet Union almost three decades ago in early 1970s.
“Russia plans to allocate an amount of $500 million for upgrading the Pakistani Steel Mills,” Andey V Demidov, Consul General of Russia in Pakistan, told a press briefing here at Karachi Press Club.
He was flanked by Faizullah, an Urdu-speaking Muslim public relations officer at the Russian Consulate, hailing from Russian republic Tatarstan. The consul general said special agreements were underway between the two countries on the construction of a South Asian Electricity Trade and Development Project CASA-l000. Recounting the visits of President Zardari, Foreign Minister Khar and two Pakistani delegations headed by Sindh Chief Minister and FPCCI president as successful, Demidov expressed the hope that the “agreements concluded during those visits will be materialized for the benefit of our two countries and peoples”. The consul general said his government was following with keen interest “very successful visits” to Moscow and Saint-Petersburg of two official and trade Pakistani delegations.
“We believe that after the presidential elections in Russia, the bilateral relations between Russia and Pakistan will receive further development,” said the consul general while terming February’s (2012) visit of FM Khar as very successful.
About the March 4 presidential polls, Demidov said five candidates running for the presidential slot included Sergey Mironov of Fair Russia Party, Guennady Zuganov of Communist Party, Vladimir Putin of United Russia Party, Vladimir Zhirinovsky of Liberal Democratic Party and the self-nominated Mikhail Prokhorov.
Stressing on the political significance of the presidential elections, the consul general said the world was living in a period of time that could not be considered as “easy”.
“The humanity is now at a critical stage of its development without exaggeration,” he said adding “A new polycentric International System in world politics, economics and finance is taking shape before our eyes.” Terming international terrorism as a phenomenon opposed to that system, the Russian consul general said numerous international issues were being addressed based on the threats of use of force or the direct use of force. “Under these circumstances, the foreign policy of Russia has to settle lots of problems that become even more complicated every day. It is our duty to secure our interests in this process so that Russia retains a worthy place in the emerging global architecture.” Russia, he said, had no hidden agendas and wanted stability around its borders and was striving to provide the most favourable external conditions to tackle the vital tasks of modernising its economy and transferring it on to an innovative track.
Demidov said the Russian foreign policy had become “more modern”. “Our foreign policy is based on mutually beneficial cooperation among the states, among businesses, among people,” he said.
During the briefing, Faizullah told a questioner that the media worldwide and in Pakistan was becoming part of an international propaganda launched by the US and its western friends. “The (anti-Putin) protesters go to the American Embassy before taking to the streets,” claimed the Russian official. He said the media was exaggerating the number of participants in the protests in Russia which was inappropriate.