Russia keen to invest in Pakistan to boost trade ties

Pakistan desires to transform relations with Russia into a strategic partnership

Russia is eager to expand trade ties with Pakistan in varied fields including aircraft manufacturing, railways and steel mills.

The announcement was made during the visit of 64-member delegation, led by Russian Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Valentinovich Manturov.

will help boost Pakistan’s economy by cooperating in various fields including aircraft manufacturing, state media said Wednesday. 

“We will extend cooperation to Pakistan to revive the Steel Mills and enhance its productivity,” the Russian minister said.

He said that his country also wants to cooperate with Pakistan in the aircraft manufacturing sector.

Addressing the reporters, Pakistan’s Economy Minister Hammad Azhar said there is huge scope of cooperation between the two countries in the energy sector.

“There are tremendous opportunities to enhance cooperation in the fields of trade, business to business relations and people to people contacts,” Azhar said.

He added that Pakistan desires to transform relations with Russia into a strategic partnership.

Pakistan and Russia have agreed to a joint venture to enhance the cooperation for the upgradation and modernisation of Pakistan railways infrastructure, as the two sides resolve to increase volume of bilateral trade through enhanced business activities by their private sectors.

During a plenary session of the 6th Pak-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation, Moscow also showed keen nterest in Pakistan’s pharmaceutical and energy sectors.

Both sides exchanged views on future cooperation in multiple sectors, especially energy, trade, transport, railways, agriculture and science and technology. The two also discussed enhancing trade ties by removing a temporary ban on Pakistan’s agricultural exports, including rice and potatoes.

Earlier, RT reported that Moscow and Islamabad have inked their largest-ever cooperation deal, worth billions of dollars in energy, rail and steel industries.

The two sides also discussed investments in the much-delayed $2.5 billion North-South gas pipeline. Reports also suggested that Russia is keen to make $14 billion investment in Pakistan’s energy sector.

Russia is also interested to invest worth $1 billion for the rehabilitation and upgrading of the Pakistan Steel Mills, a mega industrial complex having the production capacity of over one million tons of steel and iron foundries, was built with the contribution of the Soviet Union in 1973.

Pakistan’s national carrier Pakistan International Airline (PIA) is also in talks with Russia to purchase Sukhoi Superjet 100 (SSJ-100) planes – the latest Russian twin-engine regional passenger aircraft. It began commercial operations in 2011. The range of the base version is 4,400km with the capacity to seat 98 passengers.