In phone call with Russian FM
\n Islamabad
\nForeign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi held a telephone call with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, on Saturday and stressed the need for a diplomatic solution to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, according to a statement issued by the Foreign Office (FO).
\nQureshi also sought the Russian government\u2019s assistance for the evacuation of Pakistani citizens from Ukraine, the statement said.
\nPhone call takes place as Pakistan continues to face pressure from the US, others to condemn Moscow\u2019s actions in Ukraine.
\nForeign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi held a telephone call with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, on Saturday and stressed the need for a diplomatic solution to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, according to a statement issued by the Foreign Office (FO).
\nQureshi also sought the Russian government\u2019s assistance for the evacuation of Pakistani citizens from Ukraine, the statement said.
\nThe telephone call takes place as tensions escalate between Moscow and Kyiv and more than a week after Russia launched a military offensive in Ukraine, inviting criticism and sanctions from the West.
\nMeanwhile, Pakistan continues to face pressure from the US and other nations to condemn Moscow over its offensive in Russia.
\nThe US said on Friday it had informed Pakistan that the war in Ukraine could have both regional and global consequences.
\n\u201cWe have briefed the government of Pakistan on the impact that Russia\u2019s unprovoked war against Ukraine could have on regional and global security,\u201d a US State Department spokesperson had told Dawn when asked to respond to these developments.
\nHowever, Pakistan\u2019s UN Ambassador Munir Akram maintained that Islamabad was not only aware of the consequences of its actions, but also \u201csupports all efforts\u201d to restore peace in Ukraine.
\nEarlier on Tuesday, the heads of various foreign missions in Pakistan, including Germany and France, had urged Islamabad in a joint letter to condemn Russia\u2019s armed hostility against Ukraine in an session of the United Nations General Assembly, which was convened to vote for a resolution against Russia.
\nIn the session, Pakistan had, however, abstained from voting but emphasised the need to protect the territorial integrity of a state without threatening the national interests of another.
\nUnderlining Islamabad\u2019s concerns over the situation in Ukraine today, Qureshi highlighted during his conversation with Lavrov that Pakistan had been emphasising the significance of fundamental principles of the United Nations (UN) Charter to deal with the situation.
\nHe told Lavrov that Pakistan had called for \u201cde-escalation and underscored the need for a diplomatic solution in accordance with the relevant multilateral agreements, international law, and provisions of the UN Charter,\u201d the FO statement said.
\nQureshi further informed the Russian foreign minister about his recent phone conversations with counterparts from Ukraine, Poland, Romania and Hungary, as well as with the high representative of the European Union, in which he had shared \u201cPakistan\u2019s principled position and stressed the importance of finding a solution [to the Russia-Ukraine conflict] through dialogue and diplomacy\u201d.
\nHe expressed the hope that talks initiated between Russia and Ukraine would \u201csucceed in finding a diplomatic solution\u201d.
\nMoreover, the FO said, he emphasised that the \u201csafe and swift\u201d return of Pakistani citizens from Ukraine remained the government\u2019s topmost priority and requested Russia for help to facilitate the process.
\nLavrov assured him of full support on this account, the FO statement added.
\nThe Russian foreign minister also shared Moscow\u2019s perspective on the situation, spoke about Kremlin\u2019s measure to allow a humanitarian corridor in Ukraine and underlined readiness for the next round of talks with the Ukrainian side, the FO said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In phone call with Russian FM Islamabad Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi held a telephone call with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, on Saturday and stressed the need for a diplomatic solution to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, according to a statement issued by the Foreign Office (FO). Qureshi also sought the Russian government\u2019s assistance for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":247878,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2],"tags":[1512,812,456],"class_list":{"0":"post-247861","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-top-news","8":"tag-conflict","9":"tag-fm-qureshi","10":"tag-ukraine"},"yoast_head":"\n