Ukraine’s Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzhaparova defended her country’s defence ties with Pakistan, saying that Kyiv had military contracts with Islamabad for decades. She appeared to be sidestepping the issue of defence ties between Ukraine and Pakistan, referring to old ties between the two nations. At the same time, the Ukrainian Minister remained silent on the issue of terrorism emanating from the territory under the control of Pakistan. While seeking medical help and other assistance from India, the war-hit country should have come up with a clear and tough statement against cross-border terrorism. Ukraine must not also fight shy of calling out the countries which are either harbouring or going soft on terrorists and terror organisations operating on their soils. This could have been a much-needed message for Pakistan. There is no denying that Pakistan continues to supply weapons to Ukraine amid the past reports about alleged Pakistan-Ukraine-China-North Korea missile axis. India is also reportedly keeping a close eye on growing defence and military ties between Pakistan and Ukraine amid these reports. When asked about the defence supplies, the Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister during press interactions in the national capital was seen sidestepping these issues, saying that Ukraine’s ties with Pakistan are not targeted against India. She said that Pakistani military supplies to Kyiv were in the past. In fact, the diplomats in New Delhi were expecting some condemnation of Pakistan based terror outfits from the Ukrainian minister. They wanted her to at least come down heavily on cross border terrorism which India has been facing for decades. But Emine Dzhaparova preferred not to speak about that, given the compulsion of war-ravaged Ukraine which is seeking help in terms of weapons and military hardware from Pakistan at this point of time.
This type of stance by any country goes to embolden nations such as Pakistan which are involved in sponsoring terrorism as state policy. The Ukraine Deputy Foreign Minister’s tour to India significantly took place amid reports that Pakistan has established itself as a major provider of weapons to Ukraine in exchange for aid from western countries. Pakistan was reportedly ready to send 230 containers laden with defence items to Ukraine from Karachi port. India made a significant statement at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) when the Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister was in New Delhi. India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ruchira Kamboj called for international condemnation of Pakistan sending weapons across the international border to terrorists operating in India. “We are facing a serious challenge of cross-border supply of illicit weapons using drones, which cannot be possible without active support from the authorities in control of those territories,” said the Indian envoy, adding, “The international community should condemn such behavior and hold such states accountable for their misdeeds.” This was the message also for the Ukrainian minister who should have spoken out against cross-border terrorism, condemning the act of any country supplying arms to terrorist organisations. Diplomats at South Block are right in saying that while Ukraine is seeking help from India amid the war crisis, it should also hit out at what bothers New Delhi too much. Ukraine is fully aware of Pakistan’s conspiracy to create one trouble or the other for India. That Pakistan sends terrorists to the Indian regions to attack innocent civilians is something every country including Ukraine is aware of. With all this in view, a condemnation from the Ukrainian minister was expected. The only reference that she made to Pakistan and China was when she said that the series of events leading to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine can serve as an example of how to handle “difficult neighbours”. The Indian government needs to confirm whether Ukraine is still involved in providing Pakistan with any missile technology as was reported earlier. Will Pakistan get this service as a reward for helping Ukraine when it is fighting a war with Russia? Is this the reason why the Ukrainian minister stopped short of condemning Pakistan-sponsored terrorism?