Pakistani and Russian defence ministers signed a military cooperation agreement Thursday on exchanging views and information on politico-military issues as well as strengthening mutual trust and international security.
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu arrived here earlier in the day to discuss defence cooperation, Xinhua reported.
Talks between Shoigu and his Pakistan counterpart Khawaja Asif in the garrison city of Rawalpindi focused on strengthening defence cooperation between the two countries, officials said.
Both sides stressed the need to continue the momentum gained during a Moscow conference and expressed satisfaction over convergence of views on most of the international and cross regional issues.
Asif said strong ties between Pakistan and Russia would help promote regional stability and prosperity.
The Russian defence minister appreciated the skill and expertise demonstrated by the Pakistani armed forces in fighting against terrorism, saying the international community not only praised but wanted to do business with Pakistan now.
More From This Section
Reports said Shoigu would also meet Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
The two-day visit came weeks after reports that Moscow had given the green light to the sale of MI-35 helicopters to Pakistan, which is interested in purchasing up to 20 helicopters.
Russia would provide MI-35 helicopters to strengthen Pakistan's counter-terrorism efforts, Russian Ambassador Alexey Dedov said last week.
"The deal has politically been approved; however, further negotiations on details of political-commercial contract are in progress," he told Radio Pakistan.
Reports said both defence ministers also discussed the security situation in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of most of the NATO forces at the end of this year.
According to a report by TASS news agency, Shoigu said after talks with Asif that the agreement was an important step towards strengthening ties between Moscow and Islamabad in the military sphere.
"During the meeting, we agreed that bilateral military cooperation should have a great practical focus and contribute to increasing combat efficiency of our armed forces," Shoigu said.
This is the first visit by Russia's defence minister to Pakistan after the collapse of the former Soviet Union. The last visit took place as far back as 1969, when the former USSR's then defence minister Andrey Grechko made a trip to the country.