Daily Times

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) has rubbished claims that Pakistan has turned back on its neutral stance and was sending arms to Ukraine for the nation’s ongoing war against Russia. In her weekly press conference, Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch termed the reporting on Pakistan’s supply of arms to Ukraine inaccurate. “The reporting about supply of defense items by Pakistan to Ukraine is not accurate,” the spokesperson categorically stated, rejecting the claims. “Pakistan maintains a policy of non-interference in military conflicts. Pakistan only exports defense stores to other states based on strong End Use and none re-transfer assurances. And this is the case of Pakistan’s position in the Ukraine-Russia conflict,” she said. Pakistan has maintained a delicate balance since Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago. Despite pressure from the US and its western allies, Islamabad has not publicly denounced Russia, though it does raise concerns over the humanitarian situation in Ukraine.

Islamabad also twice abstained from voting on a resolution at the UN General Assembly session against Russia. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has also been the subject of domestic controversy as former prime minister Imran Khan accused the US of conspiring against him after he refused to cancel a visit to Moscow.

But the Russian Ambassador in Pakistan in a recent interview said the US might be unhappy with Imran’s Moscow trip in February last year but his ouster through a vote of no-confidence had to do more with the domestic situation in Pakistan.

When asked, the spokesperson refused to dwell on the controversy insisting it was an “old story.” She would also not comment on the Russian Ambassador’s interview, saying that those were his “personal remarks.”

To another question, the spokesperson said that cypher controversy was now a thing of the past. “We believe that this controversy is in the past, it has been discussed and debated and settled and we do not wish to address it any further,” she replied when asked to comment on the recent change of stance by Imran where he said the alleged conspiracy originated from Pakistan and not the US. The spokesperson said that Pakistan was encouraged by the positive momentum in its relations with the United States and the engagement that was taking place both here and in Washington DC.

“We believe that the ongoing visits will contribute to further strengthening of bilateral relations between Pakistan and the United States,” she further said.