LAST week, Russian President Vladimir Putin talked on several geopolitical issues in St Petersburg, which also define Moscow’s approach to China, India and Pakistan. The most interesting statement he made was that he does not believe Pakistan was under the control of China; he said that Pakistan is a large country that has multifaceted ties with different states. Perhaps he was trying to justify Moscow’s recent defence-related talks, which the Taliban regime’s defence minister, Mullah Yaqoob, used as a counter-response to the Pakistani air strikes inside Afghanistan.