Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi found himself in a rather awkward situation when he was caught on camera criticising Chinese President Xi Jinping when he was approached by a Pakistani student about China's travel ban.
On being asked by a Pakistani student why individuals from Malaysia were allowed to return to China but Pakistanis were not "permitted to return to China?" Qureshi replied that "even Xi Jinping doesn't go anywhere."
Xi has not left China in the past 24 months.
Pakistan and China are said to share a cordial relationship and yet ever since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, Pakistani citizens have been barred from entering China.
This has affected as many as 28,000 Pakistani students are enrolled in Chinese universities. Foreign medical qualifications obtained without on-the-job training will not be recognised in Pakistan, angering medical students who have been affected by the circumstance.
(With inputs from agencies)
