PM Shehbaz wishes to strengthen ties with Russia

• PM Shehbaz wishes to strengthen bilateral ties with Russia, 
• PM Shehbaz thanks Putin for his congratulatory message in a counter letter, say sources.
• PM talks about Afghanistan issue in his letter, per sources.

ISLAMABAD: In a reply to Russian President Vladimir Putin's letter, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed his wish to strengthe bilateral ties with Russia, according to media reports.

Prime Minister Shehbaz has written a letter to Putin as a response to his letter, thanking the Russian president for his congratulatory message, sources privy to the matter said. 

According to The News, the premier, in his letter, said that Pakistan would like to support Russia on the Afghanistan issue.

The Russian president had written a letter last week congratulating Shehbaz Sharif on his election as the prime minister. He also expressed the desire to deepen cooperation between the two countries. 

Foreign Office officials said resetting ties with Russia was a decision taken by the state a long time back, keeping in view the changing regional and international alignments.