New Delhi: A purported video of Pakistani PM Shehbaz Sharif barging into a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has gone viral, causing much amusement and trolling on social media.
The reported faux pas occurred during Sharif’s visit to Turkmenistan’s capital city, Ashgabat, on the sidelines of the International Forum to mark the International Year of Peace and Trust. Sharif was reportedly kept waiting for 40 minutes to meet Putin for their bilateral.
In a post on X, state-controlled Russian media outlet RT News, said “PM Sharif waited for over 40 minutes for President Putin before growing tired and gatecrashing the Russian leader’s meeting with Erdogan.”
However, RT News deleted the post and shared another post claiming the previous one “may have been a misrepresentation of events”.
Neither the Russian foreign ministry nor its Pakistani counterpart has issued a statement clarifying the chain of events.
Sharif, in a post late Friday night on X, shared details of his meeting with Erdogan, calling him a “dear brother” and a “trusted friend of Pakistan”.
“We also exchanged views on regional and global developments, including Gaza and Afghanistan, reaffirming our commitment to peace, stability, and the well-being of our peoples, the region and beyond,” he wrote.
The incident is not the first instance of diplomatic embarrassment for the Pakistani PM. He was trolled after he fumbled with his earpiece in September during a meeting with Putin on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting in Beijing.
In 2022 too, the Pakistani leader, while meeting Putin in Uzbekistan, had struggled to put on earphones.
Sharif’s latest meeting comes just a week after Putin visited India for the annual India-Russia Summit.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)