UK’s Pakistan representative seeks condemnation of Russia over Ukraine

LONDON: The British Prime Minister’s Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Nigel Casey has said that Pakistan and the UK have a mature relationship, which allows both countries to speak frankly about the issues where both countries disagree.

Speaking to Geo News at the National Day of Pakistan event at the Pakistan High Commissioner’s house here, Nigel Casey said that Pakistan and the UK have a strong relationship but both countries differ on issues too.

When asked about the UK and European Union’s demand on Pakistan to condemn the Russian attack on Ukraine, Casey said: “We have asked all countries, particularly democratic counties, to make a clear stand against the unprovoked act of Russian aggression in Ukraine. This was without any justification and this was a barbaric aggression and we believe it needs to be condemned by all countries of the United Nations.”

The British Prime Minister’s Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan didn’t agree with Prime Minister Imran Khan’s statement that the Western countries had adopted an approach of double standards by not condemning the Indian aggression in Kashmir but demanding of others to condemn the Russian attack on Ukraine. He said: “I don’t believe there are any double standards. What Russia has done is a clear breach of the UN Charter and every member of the UN ought to be able to be equally clear in condemning what Russia is doing in Ukraine. It is utterly without any justification.”

When asked about PM Imran Khan’s statement saying that Western countries should not treat Pakistan like a slave, PM Boris Johnson’s Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan said: “We have a strong relationship with Pakistan going back many years. It’s a mature relationship which allows us to speak frankly about issues where we disagree. This issue is the most important issue in world affairs right now and we are asking all members of the UN, particularly countries like ours, to take a clear stand and condemn this unprovoked aggression.”

Nigel Casey didn’t refute the report in The News that at least three high profile visits between the UK and Pakistan have been cancelled due to the relations hitting an all-time low between the two countries over the UK govt’s protest against PM Imran Khan’s visit to Russia and his speech against the Western countries. When asked why these visits – two scheduled from Pakistan to the UK and one from the UK to Pakistan – were cancelled, Nigel Casey said that for the UK it was the Ukraine situation that mattered the most. He said: “The most important is the situation in our neighbourhood in Europe where there is a mass campaign of unprovoked aggression and invasion of the sort we should not have seen in 21st Century. All countries, particularly democracies, should take a very clear stance making their views very clear to Russia that this is a completely unacceptable behaviour in the 21st Century.”

This reporter asked the Special Representative why there was no equal concern about other countries which had either abstained from voting against Russia or had simply not condemned the Russian attack, Nigel Casey said that it’s important that Russia gets a clear message from the international community, so we work with partners and allies around the world to try and make sure that message is as loud and clear as it can be.

He added: “Over 140 countries in the UN have voted for the resolution condemning Russian aggression asking Russia to immediately reverse that aggression and leave Ukraine. We want to see more countries joining us in telling that to Russia.”