BEIJING: Pakistan and Russia agreed on Wednesday to re-launch their inter-governmental commission by the end of this year to revatalise bilateral relations, with focus on infrastructure development, energy, rail link, heavy industry and upgradation of Pakistan Steel.

The agreement was reached at a meeting between Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held here on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.

During the meeting which lasted about an hour and fifteen minutes, they agreed on the need for re-engaging relations, according to Pakistan’s Ambassador Masood Khan who briefed the media on the talks between the two leaders.

Mr Putin said his country would support Pakistan’s request for full membership of the SCO and indicated that he would back resumption of composite dialogue between India and Pakistan because reduction of tension between the two countries would facilitate improvement of Moscow’s relations with Islamabad.

Mr Gilani briefed Mr Putin on Pakistan’s initiative for resumption of composite dialogue with India and his meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and urged Mr Putin to persuade New Delhi to resume talks.

About the security situation in and around Afghanistan, both leaders said that despite difficulties in resolving the Afghan issue efforts must continue to find a way out. Mr Putin said his country could play an important role in eradicating terrorism and extremism from the region.

He said Russia would be interested in exploring cooperation in the fields of oil and gas and would support the completion of Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project.

With regard to Pakistan’s action against terrorists and militants in Swat, according to sources, Mr Putin termed it ‘an act of courage which shows you are determined to take on the challenge’. He appreciated the efforts of Pakistan in fighting terrorism and said that his country faced a similar situation but dealt it with an iron hand.

Earlier, addressing the meeting of the SCO Council of Heads of Governments, Mr Gilani sought full membership of the organisation and said such a step would promote regional stability.

Mr Gilani said the ‘SCO must assume the lead in initiating a high-level strategic dialogue engaging the spectrum of its association, members, observers and partners, to crystallise and prioritise a comprehensive and large-scale trans-regional development agenda’.

He also called for working out ‘practical modalities to craft investment instruments for win-win project cooperation in the areas of energy and infrastructure connectivity as also for exploiting the region’s vast mineral, industrial and agricultural resources’.

He said free trade was the only option. ‘To enable the regional economies to shield themselves from the vagaries of financial turmoil, what we trade, how much and in what manner must assume high priority,’ he said.

He added that ‘currency swap arrangements must be put in place, alongside trade promotion and facilitation measures’.