No agreement on cheaper wheat, oil with Pakistan: Russia

ISLAMABAD: Russian Ambassador to Pakistan Danila Ganich Sunday said that a trade deal worth $790 million was signed with Pakistan out of which, it was agreed, $212 million would be spent on Russian wheat.

“In 2020, an MoU was signed between the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia and the Ministry of Food Security of Pakistan in this regard,” the Russian ambassador said while speaking to a private TV channel.

“I confirm that no MoU has been signed on the trade of wheat and oil at cheaper prices with Pakistan,” Ganich said while replying to a question regarding Imran Khan’s claims that Russia had offered PTI-led government to buy its oil at cheaper rates.

Khan, since being ousted through a no-confidence motion in April, repeatedly claimed that his government was buying cheaper oil from Russia and had written a letter in this regard. The ambassador said that negotiations between the Pakistani and Russian officials had been taking place under Imran Khan-led government and were taking place under the incumbent government too. “But I cannot talk about what discount could be offered,” he added.

Replying to a question regarding Imran Khan’s claims that his visit to Russia was the reason behind his ouster, the ambassador said that the former premier’s presence in Moscow on that very day when Russia invaded Ukraine was a coincidence. “If Imran Khan had known, he would never have visited the country that day,” Ganich added.

The ambassador said that Imran Khan was basically an honest man and wanted to work for the betterment of his people. Speaking about the recent Islamophobic remarks by Indian leaders, Ganich said that disrespecting other religions was condemnable.

To a question regarding aid to Afghanistan, he said humanitarian assistance should be provided to the Afghan people. The ambassador rebutted the Western media reports that President Putin was ill, adding the Russian president was working 24/7. He said the sanctions imposed on Russia have slowed down the country’s economy but “we’ll revive out economy by next year.” He said that Russia was not a satellite state of any country. “Whenever we feel any threat, we’ll go to any extent to alleviate that.”