It is heartening to mentionhere that over the years Russia-Pakistan relationshiphas been steadily showing positive dynamics. Growing trust between Moscow and Islamabad has manifested itself in recent bilateral exchanges,the latest being the visit to Moscow of the Defense Minister Asif Muhammad Khawaja who attended the 6th Moscow ?onference on International security.The ties between the defense establishments of both the countries are aimed at closer cooperation in fighting terrorism which is a common threat both to Russia and Pakistan.Joint Russia-Pakistan tactical ground exercise last October and participation of Russian ships in multinational naval exercise "Aman-2017"last February were very visible events in the current bilateral framework.
Another event also deserves a special mention. It is the 49th World Military Sailing Championship 2016 which was held in Karachi last November. The Russian team, one of the 8 performing teams, won the final race.
On the political plane the two countries have been actively engaged in bringingabout stability in Afghanistan and enhancing security in the region. There is more good news. The trend for a decreasing trade turnover which was caused bythe global economic slumphasbeen reversed.Last year the volume of bilateral trade started to grow. This augurs well for the plans to fully utilize the potential of our economic cooperation which is enormous. Russia has demonstrated willingness to tap the gas market of Pakistan and has undertaken to finance the construction of an LNG pipeline from Karachi to Lahore. Afew delegations comprising representatives of Ministry of Energyof Russia and of the giant gas company "Gazprom" visited recently Pakistan to explore new avenues for cooperation in hydrocarbonsand, notably,in LNG supplies from Russia.
These facts give just a glimpse into the present-day Russia-Pakistan relations. These relations are destined to go from strength to strength especially in view of thegrowing demand for stability in the region and for regional connectivity. South Asia is rapidlyturning into a focal point for the foreign policy of Russia and the Consulate General of the Russian Federation in Karachi concentrates its efforts on reinforcing the ties between Russia and Pakistan. Both the countries are marching steadily towards closer and mutually beneficial cooperation in many areas which augurs well for the future of the region and the world.