Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has been pictured shaking the hand of Vladimir Putin on the day Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine.
Khan met with Putin in Moscow on Thursday as he continues to push for the construction of a multi-billion-dollar gas pipeline to be built in collaboration with Russian firms.
The pipeline, which is expected to be 1,100 kilometres long upon completion, was initially agreed to in 2015 and was to be financed by both countries, with a Russian construction company due to complete the build.
The pair met in Moscow on Thursday
SPUTNIK/Reuters
However, Khan has explained why there had been delays on the construction.
"This North-South pipeline suffered, one of the reasons...was the companies we were negotiating with, turned out that U.S. had applied sanctions on them," Khan told Russia Today on Tuesday.
"So, the problem was to get a company that wasn't sanctioned."
The pipeline is of huge importance to Pakistan as it would deliver imported Liquified Natural Gas from Karachi to power plants in the northeastern province of Punjab.
As the talks continue between the two parties, fears over Russia's "full-scale invasion" of Ukraine continue to mount.
Russia began the attack on its neighbours on Thursday morning, with blasts being heard across widespread parts of Ukraine.
There are concerns that the ongoing conflict could instigate the biggest conflict seen in Europe since World War 2.