Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Sunday held a telephonic conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Kuleba, and "underscored the importance of de-escalation".

In a statement, the Foreign Office (FO) said that Qureshi "shared Pakistan’s perspective in detail, reiterating serious concern at the situation, underscoring the importance of de-escalation, and stressing the indispensability of diplomacy".

Qureshi also noted that Prime Minister Imran Khan, during his recent visit to Moscow, had regretted the latest situation between Russia and Ukraine and said that Pakistan had hoped diplomacy could avert a military conflict.

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"[Qureshi] stressed that conflict was not in anyone’s interest and that developing countries were always hit the hardest economically in case of conflict. The foreign minister underlined Pakistan’s belief that disputes should be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy," the FO statement said.

FM Qureshi also discussed the evacuation of Pakistani citizens and students in Ukraine with his counterpart.

"He appreciated the role played by the Ukrainian authorities in the evacuation process and asked for continued facilitation and smooth border crossing at the earliest possible," the FO said, adding that the two ministers agreed to remain in contact.

During the Moscow visit, PM Imran had conveyed to Russian President Vladimir Putin that he regretted the situation developing between Russia and Ukraine, adding that Islamabad had hoped that military conflict could be averted through a diplomatic solution.

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A communiqué issued after the meeting between the two leaders stated that the prime minister stressed that conflict was not in anyone’s interest and that developing countries were always hardest hit economically in case of conflict. “He underlined Pakistan’s belief that disputes should be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy.”