Ukraine Ambassador to Pakistan Markian Chuchuk said that Pakistan remained neutral in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, adding that any country’s neutrality in the conflict was unacceptable.

“We believe it is like provoking Russia against Ukraine,” the ambassador said in an interview on Aaj News talk show Rubaroo with host Shaukat Piracha.

He said that his country believed that Pakistan would join the countries opposing Russia’s invasion, adding that Ukraine would not tolerate not only Pakistan but any country’s stance to remain neutral on the Ukraine issue.

Earlier in February this year, the then prime minister Imran Khan visited Russia and had met president Vladimir Putin, as Russian forces continued their invasion of Ukraine.

Pakistani officials had insisted that Khan’s Moscow trip had nothing to do with the Russia-Ukraine conflict, saying that the visit was scheduled much earlier.

The then prime minister, Imran Khan, had refused to condemn Putin and publicly criticized Western diplomats in Islamabad for urging his government to denounce Moscow’s aggression against Kyiv.

In April, COAS Bajwa had called for an immediate cessation of what he described as a “huge tragedy” being inflicted on a smaller country.

“Pakistan has called for an immediate ceasefire and cessation of hostilities. We support immediate dialogue to find a solution to the crisis,” he had said while addressing the Islamabad Security Dialogue 2022.

Chuchuk praises COAS General Qamar Javed Bajwa for criticizing Russia for its military attack on Ukraine, saying that the army chief’s attitude was courageous.

The envoy also thanked Pakistan for sending two consignments of humanitarian assistance supplies to Ukraine.

Chuchuk said that Russia’s attack was the second biggest military attack after the Second World War, adding that Russia planned to overrun Ukraine in a few days, but “due to strong resistance of Ukraine Russia’s strategic plan failed.”

He said that Russia was now accused by the international community of carrying out war crimes and several countries even call it genocide. “Maybe it would let to some changes in political stance of Pakistan toward war,” he added.