ISLAMABAD – The United Kingdom has canceled the scheduled visit ofPakistan’s National Security Advisor Moeed Yusuf as Islamabad’s neutralstance in the Russia-Ukraine conflict irked the Western bloc.
A report in *The News* said the British government on Friday unilaterallycalled off the visit of Moeed Yusuf without citing any effective reason.
Yusuf’s visit was reportedly shelved as the South Asian country opposedWestern pressure to condemn the Kremlin for its invasion of Ukraine,instead calling for dialogue and diplomacy to end the crisis.
The development comes days after European Union (EU) ambassadors inIslamabad issued a rejoinder to the policy through a joint press statementwhile the nuclear-armed country expressed its dismay over the statementterming it undiplomatic and unacceptable.
The Foreign Office spokesman addressed the dilemma saying the country hadtaken note of a joint statement issued by a group of EU envoys posted inIslamabad. Pakistan expressed concern over the statement as it is not theway diplomacy should be practiced, he added.
Earlier today, Prime Minister Imran Khan lambasted European Unionambassadors for writing a letter over the Russia-Ukraine war and urgingIslamabad to vote against Kremlin at the UN General Assembly session.
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Addressing a public rally, the premier said European Union envoys urgedIslamabad to support a resolution condemning the Russian invasion ofUkraine after the country abstained from an earlier vote on the crisis. “Iask EU ambassadors did you write that letter to India as well?” Khanquipped.
The premier asked the western countries if they had written the same letterto India, or even criticized it, when it unilaterally ended the specialstatus of occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJ&K) in August 2019 in clearviolation of the UN Security Council resolutions — let alone endingdiplomatic relations and trade with that country.
He asked if the western bloc thanked Pakistan for standing with it duringthe Afghan war. Instead, they blamed us for their failure in Afghanistan.
