Russia visit not behind Imran Khan’s ouster: Bilawal Bhutto

Islamabad: Foreign Minister and Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said Monday that it would be a misunderstanding to club the visit to Russia with the no-confidence.

In an informal conversation with journalists in the Parliament House, he said the biggest testimony of this is that Pakistan’s neutral position regarding the war was the previous government’s stance and is ours too. Had that been the reason behind the government leaving, then that policy would have changed. However, Pakistan’s stance regarding the Russian and Ukrainian conflict is that we were neutral yesterday, and are neutral today.

Regarding the visit to Iran, Chairman Bilawal said that Iran is our neighbour and in Islam, they have rights. We believe that the relation between the Pakistani and Iranian people, including those cultural and spiritual are historic. The economic coordination between the both countries has much potential to be explored. As far as the Pak-Iran Gas Pipeline is concerned, its foundation was laid by President Zardari and we would want for the international obligations, their framework and the deal to progress so that we can unlock the potential in our relations further.

We are engaging with all countries, and the food security issue is especially concerning for me. Before the war, there was a wheat and urea crisis. We would buy wheat and fertiliser from Ukraine. There is a war going on there and we are faced with increased food insecurity. We are trying for the war to end through diplomacy and dialogue. This war is not only harming Ukraine and its people but the whole region, including the people of Pakistan through inflation, food and energy insecurity. We want for the war to end so that issues such as Covid-19 climate change, which is impacting our agriculture, can be combatted together.

I personally am against the construction that is happening on agricultural land, since Pakistan has the potential to not only feed its own citizens but the world if we manage our agricultural system.