Putin calls off Pakistan visit

Russian President Vladimir Putin has put off his visit to Islamabad scheduled for October 2, which has also led to the postponement of the quadrilateral summit of Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Afghanistan that was planned to be held during the Russian leader’s visit.
Putin was to arrive in Islamabad for a two-day visit on October 2 and his landmark trip was being seen in the diplomatic circles as a great opportunity for Pakistan and Russia to improve their relations, which were marred by deep mistrust and strain during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan and the cold war between Washington and Moscow. The postponement of Putin’s visit was formally announced by the Foreign Office, which however, did not give any reason for the postponement and did not give new dates for the historic visit, which would have been the first by any Russian leader in decades. Foreign Office spokesman Moazzam Khan said the quadrilateral summit of Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Afghanistan, which was planned in Islamabad from October 2-3, was “being rescheduled”. He said, “New summit dates will be worked out after seeking convenience of the respective leaders through diplomatic channels.”
Khan said that in a letter sent to Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, President Putin expressed his eagerness to “jointly enhance our efforts to further develop Russian-Pakistani ties and advance mutually beneficial trade and economic projects”. According to the spokesman, Putin wrote in the letter: “I am confident that in future we shall be able to find opportunities for arranging our personal meeting. We shall always be happy to receive you in Russia.” An official seeking anonymity said despite the postponement of Putin’s visit to Islamabad, army chief General Ashfaq Kayani was likely to proceed to Moscow in the next few days. “The ties between Islamabad and Russia are improving gradually and President Putin, we know, is eager to visit Pakistan soon. His decision to put off visit to Islamabad is most likely a schedule problem and nothing else,” he said, adding that hence there was no reason that General Kayani would not go along with his decision to visit Moscow. According to diplomatic sources, Putin’s decision to put off his visit to Islamabad could be linked to Moscow’s security concerns due to recent violent demonstrations in Pakistan against the anti-Islam movie made in US. “Perhaps, the Russians want the wave of current violent demonstrations in Pakistan to die down that they think would definitely lead to better security arrangements for the visit of President Putin,” a source said. A western diplomat, however, said the postponement of Russian leader’s visit to Islamabad could more likely be linked to Pakistan’s unwillingness to award the construction work of its section of the mega project of Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline to the Russian energy giant Gazprom. He said Gazprom had sought the project to be awarded to it without holding any bidding, but Islamabad was not willing to do that citing violations of relevant rules and regulations.