Russia urges parties in Pakistan to resolve differences through peaceful means

Russia on Wednesday called on all parties in Pakistan to resolve their difference through peaceful means.

Speaking at a press briefing in Moscow, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Russia is “closely following” the events surrounding the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan.

At least six people were killed and several others injured after protests broke out across Pakistan against the arrest of Khan on Tuesday.

"We call on all parties to resolve differences by peaceful means, we expect that mass protest actions in Pakistani cities will take place without serious clashes, the situation in the country will soon normalize," Zakharova said.

Commenting on criticism of the Russia-led military bloc Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, the spokeswoman said: "The desire of the Armenian leadership to discuss the effectiveness of the organization outside this very organization is puzzling when the CTSO has all the necessary formats for it, established channels of interaction, and most importantly, the participants of this organization, this structure, who are not only ready to listen to it (criticism), but are ready to work to improve it."

Also read: UN urges parties in Pakistan to refrain from violence following arrest of ex-premier Khan

Zakharova also said that US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken's statements about the progress achieved by the Azerbaijani and Armenian sides on the peace agreement during talks in Washington contradict the comments from Baku and Yerevan.

"Along with the progress on a number of articles of the peace treaty, (Baku and Yerevan) also admit differences in positions on some key points of this document," she said.

She also noted that Moscow expects Yerevan to take proactive steps on the deployment of the CSTO mission in Armenia.

Zakharova also slammed a statement by the Ukrainian military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov, who commenting on the killing of Russian journalist Darya Dugina said that Kyiv have been killing Russians" and "will keep killing Russians anywhere” until Ukraine’s victory.

"There are general skills that allow one to draw conclusions about this direct statement by an official with certain powers - a law enforcement officer accepted by the West - who has spoken out as an extremist and a terrorist," she said.