Islamabad counts on the realization of the Pakistan Stream gas pipeline project, which will raise relations with Moscow to a new level. Walid Iqbal, Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Human Rights, stated this at an international conference at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, dedicated to the 75th anniversary of independence of the republic.
"The implementation of the Pakistan Stream gas pipeline project will significantly advance bilateral relations," pointed out the senator, who was quoted by the Pakistani embassy in Moscow.
Iqbal stressed that the "Asian renaissance" is impossible without Russia and expressed hope for strengthening cooperation with Moscow. The senator also thanked Russia for helping Pakistan overcome the consequences of the floods.
The diplomatic mission told TASS that a high-level Pakistani parliamentary delegation led by Iqbal was in Moscow. On Tuesday, the senators attended an international conference on the 75th anniversary of Pakistan's independence at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences. At the conference, Iqbal presented an Urdu book, "The Encyclopedia of Muhammad Iqbal," dedicated to his grandfather, the poet, thinker and "spiritual father" of Pakistan.
The intergovernmental agreement on the construction of the North-South gas pipeline ("Pakistan Stream") was signed between Russia and Pakistan in October 2015. The commercial agreements were to be signed in 2016, and the facility was planned to be commissioned by 2018, but the project deadlines have already been postponed several times. On May 28, 2021, Russian Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov and Pakistani ambassador to Russia Shafqat Ali Khan signed a protocol on amendments to the intergovernmental agreement of October 16, 2015 on the construction of the Pakistan Stream gas pipeline, which allowed to proceed to the practical implementation of the project.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: btr/Creative Commons 2.5
Based on materials from TASS