ISLAMABAD (AP) – Pakistan’s prime minister urged foreign ministers from Muslim-majority nations to help end Russia’s war in Ukraine, appealing also to China’s top diplomat to join the effort.
Imran Khan spoke at the start of a two-day gathering in Islamabad of the 57-member Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, which for the first time saw the attendance of China’s Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, as a special guest.
The war in Ukraine “could have great consequences for the world”, Khan warned and added that the rest of the planet is “already suffering”, with surging prices of oil, gas and wheat from a region known as the breadbasket of the world.
He urged the ministers to “mediate, try to bring about a cease-fire and an end to the conflict”.
In his speech at the conference, the Chinese foreign minister said China supports Russia and Ukraine continuing peace talks for the sake of a cease-fire, an end to the war and peace. “We need to prevent humanitarian disasters and prevent the spillover of the Ukrainian crisis from affecting or harming the legitimate rights and interests of other regions and countries,” he said.
Wang said after the outbreak of coronavirus, Beijing provided 1.3 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines and a large amount of supplies to fight the virus to 50 Islamic countries.
Later, Wang met with Khan, according to a government statement.
It said the “two sides discussed the situation in Ukraine and reiterated the imperative need for an immediate cessation of hostilities and continued efforts for a solution through sustained dialogue and diplomacy”.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi met separately with his Chinese counterpart, the ministry said. The two “discussed the situation in Ukraine and reiterated the need for a solution through sustained dialogue and diplomacy”, the ministry said.
