ISLAMABAD: Ukraine on Thursday sought Pakistan’s support in an ‘appropriate way’ in its fight for sovereignty and territorial integrity against Russia, as the two sides denied to have any arms deal.
In a first, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba arrived on a two-day official visit to Islamabad and held bilateral talks with Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on a host of issues, including ways and means to enhance bilateral cooperation in various areas such as trade and economy.
Speaking at a joint news conference after the talks, the visiting Ukrainian foreign minister confirmed that there is no agreement or intergovernmental arrangements between Ukraine and Pakistan in the area of military supplies.
“We want Pakistan to be by our side in a way it finds appropriate for itself and minister [Bilawal] expressed condolences [over the deaths so far in the war]…and we know that Pakistan supports our territorial integrity and the reset is in the hands of the Pakistani government to choose appropriate forms of finding the way to support a country that’s fighting for its sovereignty and territorial integrity against a much stronger neighbour [Russia],” he said in response to a question about Ukraine’s expectations from Pakistan.
He said that in the talks, the two sides agreed to reinvigorate the bilateral mechanisms as both looked forward to holding the inaugural meeting of the Ukraine and Pakistan Joint Commission on Economic Cooperation.
Referring to the Black Sea Grain Initiative, Kuleba said that he briefed Bilawal about the Russian withdrawal from this initiative on Monday and about its consequences for global food security. “We regret that it will be Ukraine and countries of Asia and Africa, who will suffer the most from Russia’s withdrawal”, he said, adding that by doing so, Russia significantly undermined global food security that would result in a hike in global food prices. He said Ukraine considered Pakistan a good partner and expressed his country’s readiness to work with Pakistan in all areas, especially in the area of food security.
Since Ukrainian independence, he added that the two countries enjoyed an excellent relationship. He stated that Ukraine always stands by Pakistan in times of food crisis, adding that two years back, Ukrainian traders delivered more than one million tons of grain to Pakistan.
He also thanked Pakistan for providing humanitarian aid at a time when Ukraine needed it the most. “We understand it was not an easy decision in terms of domestic economic situation but this is what friends do, they help each other in time of greatest needs,” he added.
He said during the meeting, the two sides deliberated upon boosting trade, solving the existing problems such as that of Pakistani students who had studied in Ukraine before the war started. Furthermore, he added that he also briefed Bilawal about the opportunities Ukraine offers in the area of digitalisation of state services to make government more convenient.
In his remarks, Foreign Minister Bilawal said that they held comprehensive discussions covering the entire range of bilateral relations and regional and multilateral issues of importance.
“Pakistan enjoys longstanding friendly ties with Ukraine. Pakistan-Ukraine relationship has a long history and has covered trade and investment, agricultural and defence cooperation, cultural exchanges and deep people-to-people contacts. We wish to further expand cooperation to all areas of mutual benefit,” he added. He said that building trade and economic ties is a priority area for Pakistan. “We aspire to build a mutually-beneficial relationship that contributes to the prosperity and well-being of our nations,” he said.
He said that in the meeting, the two sides agreed on the importance of regular dialogue and engagement to further strengthen our bilateral ties. “We have also agreed to hold meetings of various institutional mechanisms in due course. We will continue to build on our conversation to add more substance to our relations,” he added.
Bilawal said that they also discussed the situation in Ukraine. “I shared with the foreign minister our deep concern at the prevailing situation and offered our condolences on the loss of precious lives and immense human suffering,” he said.
In a gesture of solidarity with the people of Ukraine and despite our own economic challenges, he added that Pakistan has sent humanitarian assistance to Ukraine. “We believe that prolonged conflict brings immense hardship and suffering to the civilian populations. We hope, therefore, that peace will prevail so that the people of Ukraine and Russia can enjoy peace dividends,” he added.
Bilawal emphasized the importance of peaceful resolution of disputes and conflicts through dialogue and engagement and Pakistan’s readiness to support peace initiatives which can bring peace to the region.“As a country in a volatile region, we understand how longstanding regional conflicts can endanger our collective security,” he said. He added that the Ukraine conflict has also brought difficulties for developing countries and the Global South, particularly in terms of fuel, food and fertilizer shortages, and Pakistan is no exception.
“We, therefore, have a vested interest in promoting peace and reconciliation. We hope for a peaceful resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy,” he added.
He also appreciated the Ukrainian government for its principled stance in supporting the resolution on countering religious hatred constituting incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence at the Human Rights Council in Geneva on 12th July.
“As we look to the future, I am confident in our joint efforts to strengthen our bilateral relationship. We resolve to move forward in fostering cooperation and friendship between the peoples of Pakistan and Ukraine,” he further stated.
Commenting on the reports that Pakistan is supplying arms to Ukraine, Bilawal rejected the reports by certain media outlets as “unfounded” alleging military supplies to Ukraine. “Since the war began, we have not concluded any agreement of defence supplies to Ukraine keeping in view our principled consistent nonpartisan position,” he added.
The Ukrainian foreign minister also confirmed that there is no agreement or intergovernmental arrangement between Ukraine and Pakistan in the area of military supplies.
However, he added that the military technical cooperation between Pakistan and Ukraine dates back to the contracts signed in 1996 and related to the supplies to the creation of Al-Khalid tanks in Pakistan with the support of the Ukrainian defence industry.
During the presser, a fly kept constantly disturbing the visiting Ukrainian foreign minister, prompting him to say in a lighter mood, “there is a fly, I hope it isn’t a Russian fly.”
Before the start of the joint presser, a Russian journalist who regularly covers the Foreign Office briefings in Islamabad was denied coverage of the joint stakeout, following officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs conveyed to him that “the Ukrainian officials have requested that no Russian journalist would sit in the joint presser.”
However, when her attention was diverted towards the incident, Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch expressed her lack of knowledge about the matter.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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