Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin on Wednesday said Prime Minister Imran Khan should not have reacted “publicly” against the European Union in his recent speech where he lashed out at the bloc’s ambassadors for their “undiplomatic” statement asking Pakistan to condemn Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking during a public rally in Vehari last week, the prime minister had questioned if the EU had called out India for its actions in occupied Kashmir, which went against international law. “Has anyone of you severed trade relations with India or objected to its unlawful actions,” the PM asked EU representatives, adding, “are we slaves and act according to your wishes.”
The premier was referring to a letter penned by 23 EU envoys last week, urging Pakistan “to join them in condemning Russia’s actions [in Ukraine] and to voice support for upholding the UN Charter and the founding principles of international law”.
Objecting to that press release, the Foreign Office had said: “We took note of that and in a subsequent meeting with a group of ambassadors, we expressed our concern about that because it was not the way diplomacy should be practised.” During a press conference in Islamabad, in response to a question by a journalist who asked if the PM’s comments could have a negative impact on Pakistan’s trade with the bloc, the finance minister said, “I don’t think we should worry about what they [EU] will do.” Tarin recalled that the EU representatives had sent a letter to Pakistan, asking it to vote against Russia, adding that “our prime minister just shared his sentiments on it”.
He recalled that the EU had remained silent on India’s violations of UN resolutions and international law and that “Pakistan had just abstained from voting [in the UNGA session on Russia].”
Defending the premier for his remarks, Tarin said they [the EU] should not tell Pakistan what to do and that it was the right of the prime minister to protect his country and its prestige. “He just reacted publicly, which may be, he should not have done,” the minister added.
He maintained that Pakistan had an independent foreign policy that stipulated that no country should violate the other’s sovereignty and that disputes be settled peacefully. The minister reiterated that Pakistan’s economy was moving in the right direction. “Inflation in January had reached 13pc and it has now dropped to 12.2pc last month.” Tarin was of the view that the government had controlled inflation “very well” if disturbances caused by international inflationary pressure were kept aside. He also said the foreign investors were considerably satisfied with measures taken by the government for facilitation of businesses, however, “they have sought a little more improvement as well, which we are working on.”