Pakistan Foreign Minister Qureshi hold talks with Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba
Pakistan’s foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Sunday called his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba to share his “serious concern” over the intensifying Russian invasion of the East European country and urged for de-escalation.
The development came as street fighting broke out in Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkiv amid the ongoing Russian attack.
Foreign Minister Qureshi shared Pakistan’s perspective in detail, reiterated serious concern at the situation, underscored the importance of de-escalation, and stressed the indispensability of diplomacy.
Qureshi shared that Prime Minister Imran Khan in his recent visit to Moscow regretted the latest situation between Russia and Ukraine and said that Pakistan had hoped diplomacy could avert a military conflict. He stressed that conflict was not in anyone’s interest and that the developing countries were always hit the hardest economically, in case of conflict.
Pakistan’s foreign minister underlined Pakistan’s belief that disputes should be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy.
Foreign Minister Qureshi also took up the important matter of evacuation of the Pakistani community and students in Ukraine and their safe return to Pakistan. He appreciated the role played by the Ukrainian authorities in the evacuation process and asked for continued facilitation and smooth border crossing at the earliest possible.