Pak FM Bilawal Bhutto, Russian counterpart Lavrov discuss matters of ‘mutual interest’ at SCO meet

BENAULIM (Goa): Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on Thursday held bilateral talks, which included matters of “mutual interest”.

The two foreign ministers held discussions on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Goa. They held talks on bilateral, regional and international matters of mutual interest.

#WATCH | Pakistan's Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari met the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers in Goa today. pic.twitter.com/HpRSBwv5LO

— ANI (@ANI) May 4, 2023

The two ministers also pledged to work closely for further deepening cooperation in food, security, energy and people-to-people contacts.

Following their meet, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, spokesperson of Pakistan MoFA tweeted, “FM @BBhuttoZardari met Russian FM @mfa_russia on the sidelines of #SCO CFM in Goa today. SCO opens new vistas of cooperation & coordination with Russia”, the tweet added.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, in an official statement, said the two ministers discussed the current state of Russian-Pakistani relations, regional and international issues, and exchanged views on the situation in Afghanistan.

“We highly appreciated the interaction between Russia and Pakistan on the world stage, including at such authoritative multilateral platforms as the UN and the SCO. We agreed to further expand contacts between the foreign ministries of the two countries”, the statement added.

The foreign ministers of Pakistan and Russia arrived in India on Thursday to attend the SCO Foreign Ministers’ meet in Goa. Upon his arrival, Zardari said in a video shared on Twitter, “Assalamualaikum, we have reached Goa, India on the occasion of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). I will first hold meeting with Russian Foreign Minister. Then, I will hold a meeting with Uzbekistan’s Foreign Minister. I will attend the dinner hosted for all the foreign ministers and there are one-two interviews lined up in the day”.

Earlier, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar held bilateral talks with his Russian, Chinese and Uzbekistan counterparts. (ANI)