ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Sunday held a telephonic conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba and expressed “serious concerns” over the situation after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and called for de-escalation through dialogue and diplomacy.

According to an official statement issued by the Foreign Office, Mr Qureshi during telephonic talk shared Pakistan’s perspective in detail at the situation, “underscoring the importance of de-escalation and stressing the indispensability of diplomacy”.

The foreign minister noted that Prime Minister Imran Khan in his recent visit to Moscow had regretted the latest situation between Russia and Ukraine and said Pakistan hoped diplomacy could avert a military conflict.

Mr Qureshi told the Ukrainian foreign minister that conflict was not in anyone’s interest and that developing countries were always hit the hardest economically in case of a conflict. He underlined Pakistan’s belief that disputes should be resolved through “dialogue and diplomacy”.

Mr Qureshi also took up the important matter of evacuation of Pakistani community and students in Ukraine and their safe return to Pakistan. He appreciated the role played by the Ukrainian authorities in the evacuation process.