Pakistan PM suggests China, Islamic countries mediate in Ukraine

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Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan called Tuesday on China and Islamic states to mediate talks between Russia and Ukraine and bring about a ceasefire.

Khan was giving a speech in the 48th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which is being held in the Pakistani capital, with China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi attending as a special guest.

"May I suggest that OIC during its discussion with foreign ministers, we should think about how ... how we can mediate, how we can bring about the ceasefire," Khan said.

He pointed out that he wants "to discuss how, maybe OIC along with China, we can all step in and try to stop this conflict which is going to have, if it keeps going the way it is, it would have great consequences for the rest of the world."

China & Pakistan concerned about sanctions on Russia

This comes hours after the Chinese foreign ministry issued a statement voicing China and Pakistan's concerns about the "spill-over effects" of unilateral sanctions on Russia.

Khan and his administration have been criticized for meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, hours after the latter announced the launch of the special operation in Ukraine.

However, Khan had noted that Pakistan is "friends with Russia, and we are also friends with America; we are friends with China and with Europe; we are not in any camp," affirming that Pakistan would remain "neutral" and put effort to end the ongoing conflict.

It is noteworthy that Islamabad had abstained from adopting the Moscow-condemning resolution at the United Nations General Assembly.