Islamabad: Pakistan Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani is all set to make a historic trip to Russia this month, which has been termed as the possible policy change in Pakistan-Russia ties blemished by the Cold War rivalry.
The uniqueness in the visit will be that Gen Kayani will be the first Pakistan Army chief to undertake a state visit to Moscow, however, former military ruler Gen Parvez Musharraf did visit Kremlin as the head of state in 2003.
The sources say that Gen Kayani would make the “momentous trip” in the second week of September, in a bid to initiate a new phase of otherwise troubled ties. Pakistani authorities expect that he would be given a warm welcome in Russia, where a meeting with his Russian counterpart and also President Vladimir Putin is planned, sources added.
Gen Kayani was at first scheduled to visit the former Soviet Union in early August but the trip was delayed due to a series of meetings with US officials as part of building confidence between Islamabad and Washington.