Putin ‘cancels’ Pakistan visit

Staff Report

ISLAMABAD: The quadrilateral summit among Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Afghanistan, likely to be held on October 2-3, was rescheduled after Russian President Vladimir Putin postponed his trip to Pakistan.
“Though the new date for the summit was not yet decided and process for its rescheduling is going on,” sources in the Foreign Office said.
When asked for the reason of the postponement of Putin’s visit, sources said that the Foreign Office had received a letter from Vladimir Putin conveying that he could not visit Pakistan due to domestic engagement.
“New summit dates will be worked out after seeking convenience of the respective leaders through diplomatic channels,” a statement issued by the Foreign Office said.
In a letter to President Zardari, Putin expressed his eagerness to “jointly enhance efforts to further develop Russian-Pakistani ties and advance mutually beneficial trade and economic projects”. The Russian president wrote, “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.”
The embassies of Afghanistan and Tajikistan were aware of the postponement of the summit but they had no knowledge of the reason behind it. “We hope that it would be rescheduled soon,” a diplomat in the Afghan embassy said.
Ties between Pakistan and Russia had been put on the positive track in the recent years and top Pakistani officials have visited Moscow. Officials of the two countries also discussed regional situation besides improving bilateral ties.

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