ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Sunday held a telephonic conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Kuleba, and shared Pakistan’s serious concerns over Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Taking to Twitter, the foreign minister said he underscored the importance of de-escalation and the indispensability of diplomacy. He also appreciated the role of Ukrainian authorities in the evacuation of the Pakistani community and students.
Spoke with Ukrainian FM @DmytroKuleba
& shared Pakistan’s serious concern, underscoring the imp of de-escalation & indispensability of diplomacy.
Appreciate Ukrainian authorities role in evacuation of Pakistani community/students & look forward to continued & swift facilitation.— Shah Mahmood Qureshi (@SMQureshiPTI) February 27, 2022
In a statement, the Foreign Office (FO) said that Qureshi “shared Pakistan’s perspective in detail, reiterating serious concern at the situation, underscoring the importance of de-escalation, and stressing the indispensability of diplomacy”.
Qureshi also noted that Prime Minister Imran Khan, during his recent visit to Moscow, had regretted the latest situation between Russia and Ukraine and said that Pakistan had hoped diplomacy could avert a military conflict.
“Qureshi stressed that conflict was not in anyone’s interest and that developing countries were always hit the hardest economically in case of conflict. The foreign minister underlined Pakistan’s belief that disputes should be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy,” the FO statement said.
During the Moscow visit, PM Imran had conveyed to Russian President Vladimir Putin that he regretted the situation developing between Russia and Ukraine, adding that Islamabad had hoped that military conflict could be averted through a diplomatic solution.
A communiqué issued after the meeting between the two leaders stated that the prime minister stressed that conflict was not in anyone’s interest and that developing countries were always hardest hit economically in case of conflict. “He underlined Pakistan’s belief that disputes should be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy.”
As the Russia-Ukraine conflict escalates, the embassy has provided updates regarding their evacuation efforts. The body stated that 125 Pakistani citizens have been successfully evacuated so far, while 376 have reached the Ukraine-Poland border, four are at the Ukraine-Romania border and nine at the Ukraine-Hungary border.
