ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Zubair Mahmood Hayat met General Valery V. Gerasimov, chief of the Russian General Staff of the Armed Forces on Friday at the Ministry of Defense, Moscow, General Hayat’s office said.
General Zubair Mahmood Hayat also laid a wreath at the “Tomb of Unknown Soldiers” at Alexander Garden.
“The sides exchanged views on regional security, state and prospects of bilateral cooperation in the military and technical fields,” the Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
It added: “General of the Army Valery Gerasimov thanked General Zubair Hayat for the participation of Pakistani national teams in the International Army Games 2018 and noted that Pakistani servicemen showed a real mastery and will to win.”
“The sides confirmed a mutual intention to deepen the dialogue and develop contacts in the defense sphere,” the ministry said.
Relations between Pakistan and Russia have improved significantly in recent years.
Earlier this week Russian Deputy Defense Minister Col Gen. Alexander V. Fomin led the delegation on a visit to Islamabad from Aug. 6 to 7, and during the talks an agreement was reached to send Pakistani soldiers to Russia for training.
Both sides will also hold the first session of the Russia-Pakistan Joint Military Consultative Committee in Islamabad, the highest forum of defense collaboration between Pakistan and the Russian Federation.