Belarussian Foreign Minister to meet Pakistani counterpart – Photo: Getty Images

Belarusian Foreign Minister Sergei Aleinik will arrive in Pakistan today.

Aleinik’s two-day visit comes at the invitation of his Pakistani counterpart, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari. The two are expected to discuss economic, political and defense matters to strengthen overall bilateral relations.

The two foreign ministers already met earlier this month, at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s summit in India. At the summit, members of the SCO—which includes China, Russia, India and Pakistan—decided to admit Belarus to the organization, which sees itself as a political and security counterweight to the West.

Belarus has become increasingly isolated since the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. While Belarus has refused to fight in the conflict itself, it is a close ally of Russia and Russian troops have entered Ukraine from Belarus. To circumvent Western isolation due its association with Russia, Belarus has increasingly turned to China, announcing a comprehensive strategic partnership with Beijing in September 2022.

Expect Belarus to try to strengthen ties with Pakistan using the same model. At today’s meeting, Foreign Minister Aleinik will be pressured to deliver on stronger economic and security cooperation with Pakistan, for which both sides are likely to announce some form of trade deal and defense industry collaboration.