Gen Bajwa awarded medal by Russian envoy

Dedov also confers medals upon ten officers and two soldiers in recognition of Latok-I rescue operation

RAWALPINDI: Chief of the Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa was conferred a medal by the Russian envoy on Thursday, said a statement by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

Russian Ambassador to Pakistan Alexey Yurevish Dedov conferred the Medal for the Commonwealth in Rescue upon the army chief, appreciating Pakistan Army's efforts for rescuing a stranded Russian mountaineer earlier this year.

During the meeting with Gen Bajwa, Dedov also conferred the Order of Friendship, Medal for Courage in Salvation and Medal for the Common Wealth in Rescue on ten officers and two soldiers of the Pakistan Army in recognition of their" cooperation, commitment and audacity during search and rescue operation at Latok-1 to rescue Russian mountaineer Alexander Gukov".

The envoy and the army chief also discussed matters of bilateral relations during the meeting.

 



The Russian climber had been stuck since July 25 and was finally rescued after a six-day ordeal.


Pakistan and Russia have witnessed improvement in bilateral relations as the two countries have been regularly interacting to address the Afghan endgame.



Earlier this week, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in a meeting with his Russian counterpart underscored the need to harmonise various regional approaches for developing a consensus on issues. Qureshi stated that Pakistan greatly values its relations with the Russian Federation. He also expressed Pakistan’s desire to develop a long-term, multidimensional partnership and friendship with Russia.



Both sides expressed satisfaction on the upward trajectory of bilateral exchange. The first meeting between Prime Minister Imran Khan and Prime Minister Dimitry Medvedev in Shanghai in November had set the tone to deepen cooperation in all areas.

In October, Russian Army troops arrived in Pakistan to participate in the third joint military drill ‘Druzhba-III’ between Islamabad and Moscow under the bilateral training cooperation agreement.