‘We wanted cheap Russian oil like India gets but…’ Imran Khan

Islamabad: Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan lamented that Pakistan could not ink a deal with Russia for cheap oil after his government collapsed following a non-confidence motion.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief in a video message said ‘We wanted to get cheap Russian crude oil just like India but that could not happen as unfortunately, my government fell due to a no-confidence motion.’

In the thick of Russian invasion of Ukraine, Imran Khan became the first Pakistani PM to visit Moscow in 23 years. The meeting however didn’t turn out to be fruitful as he could not broker any deal, giving relief to crisis in Pakistan.

While lauding India’s foreign policy, Imran Khan said Pakistan was unable to manage what India has done in procuring cheap Russian oil.

Imran Khan several times previously praised India’s achievements in both economic growth and foreign policy that helped the nation purchase Russian oil during Western sanction.

‘Despite being part of the Quad, India withstood US pressure and bought cheap oil from Russia to facilitate its people," tweeted Imran, adding, "Our government was trying to achieve this through an independent foreign policy,’ he was quoted as saying.

In April 2023, Pakistan Minister of State for Petroleum Musadik Malik said Pakistan finalized a deal with Russia for cheap oil and the first-ever shipment of which will arrive in May.

Meanwhile, India continues to buy huge quantities of cheap Russian oil after European forces clamped sanctions on Russia for invading Ukraine.

Earlier Russian news agency, TASS, reported that Russian oil giant Rosneft signed a deal with the Indian Oil Company to increase the supply of petroleum to India.