Khawaja Asif leaves for Russia on 4-day visit

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif on Monday left for Russia on a four-day official visit at the invitation of his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.

During his stay in Moscow, Khawaja Asif is expected to hold talks with Sergey Lavrov on the entire spectrum of bilateral relations as well as regional and international issues of mutual interest, a Foreign Office statement said on Monday.

“The visit would provide an opportunity to explore ways and means to further strengthen cooperation in political, economic, trade and investment, defence, education and cultural fields,” the statement added.

The Foreign Office said that relations between the two countries had been growing steadily in all fields. Regular high-level exchanges between the two countries in the last few years were a manifestation of the mutual desire for translating political goodwill into a substantive and multidimensional partnership, it added.

Pakistan and Russia are also celebrating the 70th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations this year.

The two ministers had earlier met on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session in New York in September 2017.