Ukraine’s foreign minister held talks with his Pakistani counterpart in Islamabad on July 20 during the first-ever trip of a Ukrainian foreign minister to the Asian country in 30 years.
Foreign Minister of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba held a comprehensive meeting with Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. They agreed to expand cooperation in all areas of mutual benefits including agriculture, food, security, education, technology and defense.
At the joint press stakeout in Islamabad, Kuleba said that it was an honor for him to be the first-ever Ukrainian foreign minister, who is paying an official visit to Pakistan. But he also expressed regret over the limited interaction and cooperation between the two countries that established diplomatic ties in 1993.
The two foreign ministers agreed on the importance of regular dialogue and engagement and decided to hold meetings of various institutional mechanisms in due course. They also agreed to deepen cultural exchanges and people-to-people contacts.
During the meeting, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari shared Pakistan’s concern at the prevailing situation in Ukraine and offered condolences on the loss of precious lives and human suffering. He expressed the hope that peace would prevail and emphasized the importance of engagement and dialogue and peaceful resolution of disputes and Pakistan’s readiness to support peace initiatives.
Ukraine and Pakistan call for restoring Black Sea grain deal
At the meeting in Islamabad, both Pakistani and Ukrainian officials called for the restoration of the Black Sea grain initiative to ensure global food security. Earlier this week, Russia halted the wartime deal that had allowed grain to flow from Ukraine through the Black Sea. The grain deal was negotiated in July 2022 among Turkey, United Nations, Ukraine and Russia to ensure grain supply to countries in Asia, the Middle East and Africa where there was a risk of hunger and high food prices.
Foreign Minister Bilawal expressed Pakistan’s support for the resumption of the Black Sea Initiative on the basis of dialogue and consultation.
“I will be reaching out to the United Nations Secretary General and to my counterparts in Turkey and Russia to discuss Pakistan’s concerns and our desire for the black sea grain initiative to be restored”, Bilawal assured his Ukrainian counterpart.
Bilawal said it was in the larger interest of Pakistan as well as the developed world that this grain deal should be restored.
Kuleba said Ukraine considered Pakistan a good partner and it was ready to work in all areas, especially in the area of 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 which would result in hike in global food prices.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister meets Pakistani Prime Minister
The Ukraine foreign minister also held a meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at the PM House. They discussed the entire range of bilateral relations, and regional and global issues of mutual concern including the security situation in South Asia and the Eurasian region.