Pakistan ‘optimistic about joining BRICS’ this year

Senator Mushahid Sayed welcomes ‘Russia’s goodwill for Pakistan’

Senate Defence Committee Chairman Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed has expressed the hope that Pakistan would join BRICS with cooperation of Russia, the current year’s chair of the world’s five most important developing countries.

Sayed is visiting Russia on the invitation of the ruling ‘United Russia’ party. During the meeting, he met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, former president Dmitri Medvedev, who is now the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia and Senator Vladimir Chizhov, President of the Russia-Pakistan Parliamentary Friendship Group.

During the visit, Sayed also delivered a lecture on the ‘Pakistan and the Changing Regional Scenario’ at the Russian Diplomatic Academy. He is the first prominent Pakistani to be invited to address the academy in 50 years.

Delivering the lecture, Sayed expressed optimism about Pakistan’s joining of BRICS – founded by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – with Russian cooperation. Last year, Pakistan had applied for joining the group.

In his address, Sayed welcomed growing relationship between Pakistan and Russia, especially in the field of energy, connectivity, education, regional security, including Afghanistan, and cooperation at multilateral fora, including the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and the United Nations.

Sayed pointed out that in future four Muslim middle powers – Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Turkey – would play a decisive role in regional affairs. The lecture was followed by the question-and-answer session, where Sayed appreciated President Vladimir Putin’s stance on Islamophobia.

Earlier, Sayed discussed matters pertaining to the Pakistan-Russia relations, bilateral collaboration in the region, particularly on energy and economic connectivity besides the situation in Afghanistan and the war in Gaza with former president Medvedev.

“Pakistan core interests are linked to this region, where Russia is a key factor,”Sayed told Medvedev, according to a statement released here. He added that the probable election of President Donald Trump in the US later this year would qualitatively change the region’s geopolitics.

Meanwhile, Sayed was elected as member of the 20-member standing committee of the newly-formed International Forum for Freedom of Nations. The forum was organised by the United Russia party, where Sayed co-chaired the plenary session along with Foreign Minister Lavrov.

Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed was also invited to be part of International Observers who will visit to observe Presidential Elections during March 15-17, 2024. He also interacted with various Russian media outlets and the leaders of the Pakistani community.

In his talks, Sayed stressed that he found “tremendous goodwill” for Pakistan in all official and popular circles in Moscow. He also highlighted that there’s “no fundamental conflict of interest” between Pakistan and Russia, therefore, “Pakistan remains neutral on Ukraine”.

Giving his impressions about the visit to Russia, Syed made three fundamental points. First, he emphasised that both the countries had ‘strategic space’ after ending of the foreign intervention in Afghanistan and build anew the bilateral relations in various fields.

Second, he added, Pakistan needed ‘regional reset’ in its foreign relations to take substantial initiatives for regional connectivity with Russia and other neighbouring countries; and the third, he emphasised, China was a common factor of unity and  connectivity for Pakistan and Russia.