ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has been “deeply concerned” by the continuation of hostilities in Ukraine, a Pakistani state minister has said, as Russian forces continued their push in the east of the country.
State Minister for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar said this while participating virtually in a high-level international donor’s conference for Ukraine held in Warsaw, Poland on May 5.
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in late February. On Saturday, Russia’s defense ministry said it had destroyed an ammunition depot in Kramatorsk in the Donetsk region and shot down two Ukrainian warplanes.
Ukrainian forces made some advances near Kharkiv and Kherson, inflicting heavy losses, while also suffering losses of their own, a Ukrainian presidential adviser said. The fighting is now threatening to cause a global food crisis.
“Pakistan is deeply concerned by the initiation and continuation of war in Ukraine,” the Pakistani foreign ministry quoted Khar as saying at the donors’ conference on Thursday.
“We are grieved by reports of large civilian casualties, massive outflow of refugees and internal displacement of people in Ukraine and reports of violations of international humanitarian law.”
The international community must respond to this humanitarian crisis with empathy and generosity, the Pakistani state minister urged.
“The Ukraine conflict has far-reaching implications for international security and world economy, with the developing countries hardest hit by the disruption in supply chains and the food and energy crisis,” she said.
Khar said Pakistan continued to call for diplomacy and dialogue for an early, negotiated end to the Ukraine conflict. “Immediate cessation of hostilities is a must to prevent further loss of life and to ease the humanitarian situation,” she added.
The donors conference in Warsaw raised around $6.5 billion for Ukraine, while Khar said Islamabad was in the process of dispatching a second consignment of humanitarian supplies to the Ukrainian people. Pakistan delivered over 15 tons of humanitarian assistance, including food and medicines, to Ukraine in March.
Pakistan ‘deeply concerned’ by continuation of hostilities in Ukraine
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Pakistan ‘deeply concerned’ by continuation of hostilities in Ukraine
- Hina Rabbani Khar says world must respond to this humanitarian crisis with empathy, generosity
- Islamabad also in process of dispatching another consignment of humanitarian supplies to Ukraine
Bangladesh approves new rice imports from Pakistan amid price pressures
- The deal follows Bangladesh’s resumption of direct rice trade with Pakistan earlier this year for the first time since independence in 1971
- Diplomatic ties between the two nations have improved since the ouster of prime minister Sheikh Hasina after mass protests last year
DHAKA: Bangladesh has approved the import of 50,000 metric tons of white rice from Pakistan under a government-to-government deal as part of efforts to stabilize domestic prices, officials said on Tuesday.
The Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase cleared the deal at $395 per ton, reinforcing Dhaka’s renewed trade engagement with Islamabad.
Rice prices in Bangladesh have jumped by between 15 percent and 20 percent over the past year, with medium-quality rice selling at about 80 taka ($0.66) per kilogram. Despite increased imports and the removal of duties to ease supply constraints, prices for the staple grain remain stubbornly high.
The deal follows Bangladesh’s resumption of direct rice trade with Pakistan earlier this year for the first time since independence in 1971. In February, it imported 50,000 tons of rice from Pakistan at $499 per ton under a similar agreement.
Diplomatic ties between the two South Asian nations have improved since an interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus took office after mass protests forced then prime minister Sheikh Hasina to flee to neighboring India last year.
Formerly East Pakistan, Bangladesh gained independence after a nine-month war in 1971, and relations with Pakistan have remained fraught in the decades since the conflict.
Separately, the government approved another 50,000 tons of parboiled rice through an international tender, part of a series of recent purchases aimed at cooling local prices. India’s Pattabhi Agro Foods secured the contract with the lowest bid of $355.77 per ton.
