When Ex-Cricketer Met Ex-Spy

IMAGE: Imran Khan, accompanied by his aides and security personnel, heads for the meeting with Vladmir Putin.
All photographs: Kind courtesy The Kremlin

IMAGE: Interestingly, Imran is two days older than Putin; the cricketer-turned politician was born on October 5, 1952; the spy-turned-autocrat was born on October 7, 1952.

IMAGE: Imran was the first leader to meet Putin after the Ukraine invasion. The US was clearly unhappy with Imran's decision to go ahead with his meeting with Putin, but the American displeasure wouldn't cut dice with the Pakistan PM who has yet to receive a phone call from Joe Biden after the American president took office in January 2021.
In contrast, Putin has called Imran thrice after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021.

IMAGE: The Kremlin issued a terse single sentence statement on the Imran-Putin meeting: 'The leaders of the two countries discussed the main aspects of bilateral cooperation and exchanged views on current regional topics, including developments in South Asia.'
The Pakistan prime minister's office noted that Imran had raised India's actions in Kashmir (no surprises there!) and 'underscored the need for a peaceful resolution of the issue,' according to a report in the Dawn newspaper.

IMAGE: The Pakistan prime minister's office stated, 'Recalling the telephone conversations during the recent months between the two leaders, the prime minister expressed confidence that the positive trajectory of bilateral relations will continue to move forward in the future.'
The Dawn newspaper explained that Imran 'reaffirmed the importance of the Pakistan Stream gas pipeline as a flagship economic project between the two countries'.