New Delhi: Moscow wants to expand its economic engagement with Islamabad as it believes a "weak" Pakistan will not be better for the region including India and Afghanistan, Russian Ambassador to India Denis Alipov said on Monday. After making the comments at a conference, the Russian envoy later clarified in a tweet that what he meant was that a destabilised Pakistan is not in the interest of any country in the region.
Alipov also said that Russia has taken "very close notice" of the reports that Pakistan was sending military equipment to Ukraine.
While responding to concerns in India over an upswing in Moscow's ties with Islamabad, Alipov said his country will never do anything that could be detrimental to New Delhi's interests, adding that Russia's defence relations with Pakistan are "very limited" and largely aimed at counter-terror cooperation.
"We have maintained consistently that we will never do anything detrimental to India in our relations with Pakistan.... We have a limited defence relationship with Islamabad. But it is very limited and precisely directed to counter-terror purposes," he said.
"But we want to expand our economic presence in Pakistan. We don't feel like a weak Pakistan would be a better choice for the region, for India or for Afghanistan for that matter," he said.
"So, our relations with that country are self-sufficient but we always bear in mind our relations with India and have them in the background when we look and speak about our relations with Pakistan," he said at the conference.
Pakistan is currently undergoing a massive economic crisis that has been exacerbated by depleted foreign reserves and crippling debt.
The conference on 'Next Steps in India-Russia Strategic Partnership; Old Friends New Horizons' was organised by the India Writes Network and the Centre for Global India Insights.
Later, in a tweet, Alipov said: "Meaning destabilized Pakistan is not in the interests of any in the region. A strong anti-India Pakistan cannot be in the interest of any, particularly India." Asked about reports that Pakistan was sending military hardware to Ukraine, he said: "I can assure you that we have taken a very close notice of those reports." Russia and Pakistan have been engaged in some military exercises in the last few years, triggering some concerns in India.
Russia has been maintaining that it will not do anything that will be detrimental to India's defence interests.
The Russian envoy also described his country's defence ties with India as "unprecedented".
"The licensed production in India of T-90 tanks, the SU-30MKI fighters, AK-203 assault rifles and a whole lot of armaments and components fully comply with the 'Make in India' and 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' initiatives.
"The unique joint venture on supersonic cruise missile BrahMos is a role model. Russia and India are committed to all agreements, including the contract for the advanced S-400 Triumf air defence systems that are being implemented," Alipov said.
"The 2019 equipment agreement joint production of spare parts, focusing on private sector involvement, testifies to the robustness of our partnership in this sphere," he said.
Alipov said India's significance for Russia as a key international partner is going to grow.
"Much has been done to solidify our unique and multifaceted special and privileged strategic partnership. There is a rich agenda catering to the requirements of global transformation," he said.
"I am absolutely sure that we will proceed further, with confidence drawn from the convergence of our national interests, as well as from the legacy of previous generations, particularly the fundamental principles enshrined in the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation of 1993," he added.
(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)