Russia and Pakistan have agreed to expand their hydroelectricity cooperation. The Inter-Governmental Commission (IGC) held talks in Islamabad to reach an agreement. The eighth three-day IGC meeting looked at the areas of cooperation. It looked at ways to find new ways to strengthen bilateral ties.
On Thursday, Russia and Pakistan talked about ways to “long-term” get oil and gas to Islamabad. A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office said that the talks were held during a series of meetings between Russian. The Pakistani energy ministers and other government officials over the past two days in Islamabad, Pakistan’s capital.
Other sources claim that Russia has agreed to assist Pakistan in locating alternative energy sources. It will work with Islamabad to investigate gas in the country. Pakistan and Russia have agreed to deal in local currency. The Russian and Pakistani customs will sign a deal to stop the smuggling of goods.
Russian delegation about Hydroelectricity
At the moment, a Russian delegation led. Energy Minister Nikolay Shulginov is in Islamabad to talk about ways to improve economic and trade ties between the two countries. The main topic of conversation is how to get cheaper oil and gas for the nuclear-armed South Asian nation.
It comes after a Pakistani delegation led by Minister of State for Petroleum Musadik Malik paid a visit to Moscow in December to start talks about getting cheaper oil and gas.
“The importance of the energy sector for the growth of bilateral economic and trade relations was agreed upon by both parties. Regarding this, “opinions were exchanged regarding the long-term supply of oil and gas to Pakistan from Russia,” according to the statement.
It went on to say, “Matters related to gas pipelines were also reviewed,” referring to the Pakistan Stream Gas Pipeline Project, a 1,100-kilometer (684-mile) gas pipeline that runs from the port city of Karachi to the northeastern Punjab province.
The $2.5 billion pipeline, which was supposed to begin construction last year but could not because of international sanctions placed on Moscow, was the subject of two agreements that Pakistan and Russia signed in 2015 and 2021.
Pakistan has been struggling with rising energy needs, particularly for oil and gas, as well as an expanding current account deficit as a result of oil payments. In December, Malik claimed that Russia had agreed to provide Pakistan with discounted oil to meet the rising demands for domestic and industrial energy from Islamabad. He stated that Pakistan would receive discounted prices from Russia when it purchased gasoline, diesel, and crude oil.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif
On Wednesday, the visiting Russian delegation also spoke with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in the city of Lahore in the northeast. A “special message” from Russian President Vladimir Putin was delivered to Sharif by Shulginov.
The statement says that Putin said in his message that Russia considers Pakistan to be an “important” partner in South Asia and the Islamic world and that Moscow has a strong interest in deepening the relationship with Pakistan.
For his part, Sharif emphasized the significance of Pakistan’s relations with the Russian Federation. He talked about his meeting with Putin in September of last year in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, and said that important decisions were made then to strengthen relations between Pakistan and Russia even more.
Since the visit of former Prime Minister Imran Khan just a day before Russia launched its war on Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, the acquisition of oil has long been a focal point of local politics. Khan claimed that his trip to Moscow was one of the reasons why he was removed from office in April after a no-confidence vote in the parliament.
Trade and investment, agriculture, energy, industry, education, science and technology, information and communication technologies, finance, customs, and communication, in addition to roads, postal services, and railways, were topics of discussion at technical meetings between experts from the two nations. Pakistan should also take advantage of Russia’s expertise in science and technology, according to the visiting delegation.
Before signing the final protocol in accordance with the shared schedule, there will be a primary discussion on the implementation of the gas pipeline construction project known as “Pakistan Stream Gas Pipeline (PSGP),” the delivery of oil and petroleum products to Pakistan, financial cooperation between Russia and Pakistan, and cooperation in various sectors on Friday, the final day of the meeting.