Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif welcomed the delivery, calling the arrival of Russian crude a “day of transformation” for the crisis-ravaged country. “Made another one of my promises to the nation,” he tweeted. “This is the first shipment of Russian oil to Pakistan and the start of a new relationship between Pakistan and [de] Russian Federation.’
Since it invaded Ukraine last year, Russia has sighed under Western sanctions, which countries like India and China and now Pakistan too are helping to a greater or lesser extent. In Pakistani media, Musadik Malik, Pakistan’s deputy oil minister, said that petrol prices in the country would decrease once supplies from Russia are made on a regular basis.
Shortage of foreign currency
Pakistan is going through a serious economic crisis. It is desperately short of foreign currency needed to import fuel. For example, according to Al Jazeera, the country has less than $4 billion in foreign reserves, covering less than four weeks of imports.
Islamabad is also awaiting a $1.1 billion rescue package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as part of a $6.5 billion loan program due to expire this month.
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