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Updated 02 Mar, 2019 12:56am

Jordanian king calls PM Khan, offers mediation to de-escalate tensions with India

King Abdullah II of Jordan made a telephone call to Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday and conveyed his concern over the escalating situation between Pakistan and India, according to a Twitter post by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.

The Jordanian king praised the premier's "statesman-like approach" in tackling the situation and "offered Jordan's mediation to help de-escalate the crisis", PTI said.

Over the course of the conversation, Prime Minister Khan briefed King Abdullah about initiatives taken by Pakistan to maintain peace between the two sides for the sake of the people as well as the region at large.

Furthermore, the Kashmir dispute was discussed and Khan identified it as the core issue between the two countries that needed to be resolved as per the UN resolutions.

The premier impressed upon the king his government's agenda to promote peace and prosperity through poverty alleviation. "However the war hysteria unleashed in India [is] threatening peace of the region," PTI quoted the prime minister as saying.

Prime Minister Khan thanked King Abdullah for his offer of mediation and invited him to visit Pakistan at his earliest convenience.

A day earlier, Russia had said it is ready to mediate between India and Pakistan to try to calm tensions between the two nuclear powers.

Russian President Vladi­mir Putin told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a phone call that he hopes for a quick settlement of the crisis between New Delhi and Islamabad, the Kremlin said in a statement.

In response to the development, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said today that he accepts Russia's offer to act as a mediator between the two countries.

"Lavrov has offered to mediate. I don't know about India but I want to say this to Russia that Pakistan is ready to come to the table and de-escalate tensions," said Qureshi.

FM Qureshi speaks to Russian counterpart

Later in the day, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi spoke to his Russian counterpart Sergey Viktorovich Lavrov over the telephone to discuss the regional situation, a statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

"Foreign Minister Lavrov reiterated Russia’s offer of mediation and provision of [a] venue for the talks between India and Pakistan," said the foreign ministry statement.

"The Foreign Minister welcomed the Russian offer and added that he had acknowledged Russia’s constructive role from the floor of the Joint Session of Parliament earlier in the day, which was well-received," it added.

"The two Foreign Ministers agreed to continue consultations for [the] promotion of peace and stability in the region," the statement concluded.

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