MOSCOW : Pakistan-China-Russia will hold meeting in Moscow regarding prevailing situation in Afghanistan. There is fuelled speculation of a growing axis spurred by new ties between Moscow and Islamabad. Pakistan, Russia and China will hold consultations on Afghanistan in December to explore ways to reach reconciliation and restore peace in the war-torn country, an official here said. "We attach high importance to all initiatives aimed at bringing peace and stability in Afghanistan and the region at large," Foreign Ministry spokesman Nafees Zakaria said in a statement.

The trilateral talks have assumed importance at a time when there is no let-up in the violence in Afghanistan in spite of the advent of winter.

"Under the said trilateral meeting, a working level meeting has already taken place. The deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan has raised concerns about the spillover effect due to the presence of NSAs (non-state actors) and other elements there," the spokesman said.

He said Pakistan will also attend an upcoming meeting of the Heart of Asia in India and Foreign Affairs Adviser to Prime Minister Sartaj Aziz is likely to represent the country in the meeting.

India will host the sixth iteration of Heart of Asia conference in Amritsar during december.  The meeting, which seeks to bring regional countries together to support peace and stability in Afghanistan, was attended by foreign ministers or other high-level representatives from the 14 Heart of Asia member countries (including Afghanistan, China, India, Iran, Pakistan, and Russia) as well as representatives from supporting countries and organizations like the EU, Japan, and the United States.

After helicopter sales, and military exercises with Pakistan, India’s traditional ally, Russia, is working on a regional partnership on Afghanistan that includes Pakistan and China. Zamir Kabulov, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Director, 2nd Asian department, said the meeting would “lay the ground” for a regional project centred around Afghanistan. This has fuelled speculation of a growing axis spurred by new ties between Moscow & Isalmabad.
The development has been a blessing for Islamabad. A solid example of the invaluable Russian backing came at the recent BRICs Conference in India, where despite Pakistan’s absence, President Putin and President Xi Jinping thwarted an India-sponsored resolution to declare Pakistan a ‘terrorist State’. This was a huge favour on their part for Pakistan.

“This is a watershed moment,” said a senior Pakistani official, who believes the development is part of the realignment taking place in this part of the world. He remarked that the three-way talks will discuss how to bring an end to the long running conflict in Afghanistan and prevent groups such as Islamic State/ Daesh, from gaining a foothold in the war-torn country. When contacted, the Foreign Office spokesperson Nafees Zakaria pointed out: “The deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan has raised concerns about the spillover effect due to the presence of non-state actors and other elements there.”

The ‘other elements’ is in fact a reference to certain regional and international powers which Pakistan, Russia and China fear might eventually use the Afghan situation to achieve their larger objectives in the region.

That is why the broader context of the gathering in Moscow in the first week of December is the transformation in relationship taking place among the major international players. The latest initiative is also significant in the backdrop of possible policy changes the US president-elect Donald Trump may bring to the region, including Afghanistan. Turkish President announced seperation from West European powers, yesterday, after he concluded his visit to Uzbekistan and Pakistan. At APEC, world leaders have met on sidelines. This platform for Pacific representatives from Pacific rim that includes Asia, North America, Latin America and Australasia has gained much attention due to various reasons.

PM Nawaz Sharif did visit Russia and had a meeting with President Putin on the sidelines of Shanghai Economic Cooperation Council meeting outside Moscow. Time had come now for the Pakistani leadership to establish a direct and closer rapport with Russian counterpart for giving new dimension to their bilateral cooperation. Russia has been engaged in a $2 billion Gas Pipeline projects and wishes to come to energy sector and road building.

The Chinese history of cooperation with Pakistan is before us. China stood by its words from 1965 war with India, till date, where it is engaged in building a Herculean project of CPEC. The Russian cooperation could be traced back to eight to ten years. Two of former Presidents, General Pervez Musharraf and Asif Ali Zardari visited Moscow for rapprochement with a country, which had turned hostile to us before the 1971 war, strengthened Indian arsenal with latest equipments, which was one of the factors for Pakistan’s humiliation. But as Putin began to rebuild his country’s image, he announced a visit to Pakistan also which was unluckily cancelled at the last minute.

China and Russia seem to be more reliable towards Pakistan compared to the U.S. While Washington has weakened its diplomatic support to Islamabad, Beijing and Moscow seem to be eager to continue defending Pakistanis on the diplomatic sphere.