The Consul General of Russia in Karachi Andrey Fedorov says Russia will provide oil to Pakistan at a cheaper rate if the government of Pakistan contacts.
His statements came during a press statement in Karachi on Thursday. The Consul General confirmed that former Prime Minister Imran Khan discussed buying oil from Russia during his visit to Moscow. He also said that sanctions on Russia could affect trade with Pakistan.
Fedorov said that there is no immediate solution to the Ukraine crisis. The Consul General claims that the negotiations are being delayed due to the non-seriousness of Ukraine.
Just IN:— "Russia is ready to provide cheap oil if Govt of Pakistan contacts us for this purpose." – top Russian diplomat in Pakistan.
— South Asia Index (@SouthAsiaIndex) June 9, 2022
The former ruling party PTI has reproached the incumbent government for rising fuel prices and exacerbating inflation in Pakistan. PTI says that they were close to inking a deal with Russia to import cheap oil. Had they been in power they would have bought the Russian oil in April, says former energy minister Hammad Azhar.
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Azhar said that the sitting government is even stopping the private companies to buy oil from Russia. He said that even Bangladesh is close to an agreement to buy cheap oil from Russia.
He said that they initiated the talks with Russia mid-march. “On March 29, we received a call from Ambassador in Moscow, who informed that Russia was interested in selling oil cheaper,” he added.
Russia is ready to sell cheap oil to Pakistan, but unfortunately our Finance Minister still doesn’t know there aren’t any sanctions on it. He’s learning. #امپورٹڈ_حکومت_نامنظور https://t.co/h4lUmXrbAW
— Virk Shahzaib (@VirkSh786) June 9, 2022
“Rs300 billion was set aside for oil subsidy. If we could get cheap oil from Russia, we would have saved this amount,” said Hammad Azhar. “If even 2-3 percent economic growth is achieved next year, it will be a great accomplishment for the government,” he added.
With the exacerbating inflation and hike in energy prices, pressure is mounting on the sitting government over its reluctance to buy Russian oil. Debate on the benefits and possible impact of buying Russian oil on Pakistan is increasing among people.