- According to Shafqat Ali Khan, Pakistan is also open to dialogue on the possibility of using Russia’s Mir payment system in the country
According to TASS, Russia's state-owned news agency article published on October 17, 2022, Russia and Pakistan are discussing the possibility of switching to settlements in national currencies in trade, Pakistani Ambassador to Moscow Shafqat Ali Khan said in an interview with TASS.
"That is one of the areas under discussion. The two sides, the central banks are trying to work out a series of practical questions. Russia has a very strong experience in dealing with so many countries. We don’t have experience with trading in local currencies. So, this is something we would want to learn," he said.
According to him, "Our problem, for example, is that all our trade is primarily done in dollars or euros, and then we have some experience in barter trade,with Iran. But we do not have experience in dealing with, for example, fluctuation of currencies, converting currencies".
In addition, the ambassador noted that the parties also intend to discuss the possibility of trading in yuan. "This is also an area we want to discuss. The point I am trying to make is that political will is one thing, but to translate political will into detailed technical procedures and experience is going to need experience and also some time to get used to it. Bilateral trade is extremely import for us. Some bilateral trade relationship going down may not impact Russia, but it impacts us deeply. We don’t want our trade with Russia to suffer," he said.
According to him, Pakistan is also open to dialogue on the possibility of using Russia’s Mir payment system in the country. "We are open to discussions about this, but after convertibility questions and the trade questions are resolved," he noted.
