F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: Coordinator to Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) Meher Kashif Younis on Monday said that Pakistan could capitalise the opportunity to expand cooperation and attract Russian investments as Russia’s economic footprint in Asia is still relatively low.
Addressing the celebration of the Russia Day ceremony, he said, “This year marks a very important milestone in our relations-a 75th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic ties between Russia and Pakistan,” said a press release.
Meher Kashif Younis said we had quite a few important episodes in the history of our productive bilateral cooperation.
“It’s a good omen to note that Russian President Vladimir Putin in his recent address to the federal assembly categorically mentioned Pakistan as one of the few countries with which Russia is eager to develop a partnership and this desire was clearly reflected by the practical steps made by the leadership of both countries,” he added. He said both countries had demonstrated strong political will and taken initiatives to enhance trade cooperation.
Pakistan’s pursuit of economic redemption and energy supplies, plus the Russian aspiration to expand its economic footprints in Asia brought the two countries together, he added.
He said the business community hailed the judicious decision of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to import cheap crude oil from Russia and was keen to further promote bilateral trade in diversified sectors.
He said that widely referred to as an ‘energy superpower’, Russia is the world’s leading natural gas exporter and second-largest oil exporter.
It has long been the EU’s principal supplier of natural gas and petroleum. However, as Europe moves toward decarbonization and renewable energy under the European Green Deal, Russia needs to find new markets for its energy products, Kashif highlighted.
He said in view of the prevailing global scenario, it was the need of the hour that both countries must strengthen and promote their existing economic cooperation in the days to come in addition to defence.
He said currently, Pakistan had a gas shortfall of 1.5 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd), which would double by 2025.
He said according to official estimates that domestic gas supplies in Pakistan would drop from 3.51 bcfd to 1.67 bcfd in 2028, necessitating an increase in LNG imports to meet demand.
He said Pakistan began importing LNG in 2015 to mitigate growth in consumption and to reduce oil imports.
Meher Kashif Younis said over the mere last seven years, Pakistan had become the world’s ninth largest LNG importer and Qatar is presently Pakistan’s biggest gas supplier, and the latter is still looking for more energy partners to cooperate with. (APP)
