Pakistani Minister: There Are No Divergences Between Moscow And Islamabad

"All former divergences between Moscow and Islamabad are left in the past," Pakistani State Minister Riaz Khokhar disclosed to a RIA Novosti correspondent in the course of his working visit to Moscow.

The aim of his visit to Moscow was the preparation work for the February-scheduled visit to Russia of Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, Khokhar said after the meeting with Russian First Deputy Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Trubnikov.

Khokhar described the forthcoming visit of the Pakistani President as very important. "The Pakistani President last visited Moscow in 1970," Khokhar recalled.

"With Russian First Deputy Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Trubnikov we have been working out the frames for the agenda of the forthcoming visit," Khokhar noted.

The Pakistani State Minister expressed the hope that the forthcoming talks in Moscow would contribute to the improvement of relations between Russia and Pakistan.

Pakistan is interested in the cardinal improvement of relations with Russia, which is thought in Islamabad "as one of the important and influential countries in the world," Khokhar stressed. "Russia is a global power with global interests," he underlined.

As it was disclosed earlier by the Russian Foreign Ministry, the Russian and Pakistani diplomats discussed "the present condition and perspectives for the development of the Russo-Pakistani relations and a number of issues concerning the regional security." Moscow hopes that Russia and Pakistan will maintain partner-like relations and the consequences of the Cold War between the two countries will be erased. The Russian Foreign Ministry stressed that the improvement of the relations between the two countries is not aimed against third countries, like Russia's partner India.