RT India deleted a post with a video on social media platform X about Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif allegedly waiting to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Turkmenistan.
In the latter post, the news outlet claimed that it “may have been a representation of events” emerged on Saturday. The development came as PM Shehbaz is in Turkmenistan to attend an international forum. On Friday, the Pakistani premier met a host of leaders in the sidelines of the gathering, including the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian, and Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon, Kyrgyzstan President Sader Japarov, and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
We deleted an earlier post about Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif waiting to meet Vladimir Putin at the Peace and Trust Forum in Turkmenistan.
The post may have been a misrepresentation of the events.
— RT_India (@RT_India_news) December 12, 2025
However, RT India posted a video of Shahbaz Sharif entering a hall where Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin were already having a discussion. The media outlet claimed that Pakistani Prime Minister allegedly ‘gate-crashed’ the meeting as he was scheduled to meet Putin who made him wait for 40 minutes.
The post further claimed that Sharif remained in the meeting for approximately 10 minutes before leaving. The news outlet, however, later deleted the tweet, calling it as a misrepresentation of the events.
Russian state news agency, the earlier post of RT India triggered a reaction from several Pakistani political figures and commentators on acts from both India and Pakistan. One Prime Minister’s spokesperson from foreign media, Musharraf Zaidi, also shared the same video.
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Prime Minister of Pakistan @CMShehbaz at Ashgabad. Great interactions with world leaders. Pakistan shining at the global stage Alhamdulillah !
Warm and cordial exchanges with President of Russia Vladimir Putin @kremlinrussia_E , President of Turkey @RTErdogan and President of… pic.twitter.com/J72d0OcA3T— Attaullah Tarar (@TararAttaullah) December 12, 2025
Information Minister Atta Tarar shared the video of Shabaz Sharif meeting Vladimir Putin. “Prime Minister of Pakistan @CMShehbaz at Ashgabad. Great interactions with world leaders. Pakistan shining at the global stage Alhamdulillah ! Warm and cordial exchanges with President of Russia Vladimir Putin @kremlinrussia_E, President of Turkey @RTErdoganand President of Iran @drpezeshkian,” said Atta Tarar in a post on X.
Prime Minister’s Spokesperson for Foreign Media Mosharraf Zaidi also shared the same video. “The customary warmth in relations was in ample evidence as the prime minister shared the day with President Erdogan, President Putin and a host of other key world leaders,” he said in a post on X.