'Respect your relationship with India': Pakistan PM tries to cozy up to Putin; pitches 'supplementary' ties

Pakistan has offered to build "supplementary" ties with Russia categorically mentioning that the nation had "respect" for Moscow-India relationship.

“I would like to thank you for supporting Pakistan and trying to have a balancing act in the region," Shehbaz Sharif told Russian President Vladimir Putin during bilateral talks in China.


“I know and I must say that I respect your relationship with India and it is perfectly fine, but we also want to build strong relations and these relations will be supplementary and complementary for the betterment of the region," he added.


The comments came at a time when India, China and Russia have been cornered by the US President Donald Trump for New Delhi and Beijing's continuous purchase of oil from Moscow.

Sharif also met Chinese President Xi Jinping where the two sides reiterated the need for a strong China-Pakistan relationship.

China stands ready to work with Pakistan to build upgraded versions of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and the China-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement, and hopes Pakistan will take effective measures to ensure the safety of Chinese personnel, projects and institutions in Pakistan, Xi was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua news agency.

Sharif praised the Global Governance Initiative (GGI) put forward by Xi at the SCO summit, calling it highly significant for global peace, development, and stability. He affirmed that Pakistan will fully support the initiative and actively contribute to its implementation.

Moreover, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for a united global fight against terrorism as he delivered his message on terrorism with Sharif in attendance at Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin.

“Security, peace and stability are the basis of development of any country. But terrorism, separatism and extremism are big challenges in this path. Terrorism is not just a challenge to the security of a country but a common challenge for all of humanity. No country, no society, no citizen can consider itself safe from it. Therefore, India has emphasised unity in the fight against terrorism... India took the initiative to fight Al Qaeda and the terrorist organisations associated with it by leading the Joint Information Operation... We raised our voice against terror financing. I express gratitude for your support in it,” he said.