External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said that Pakistan's future will be largely determined by its own actions and choices and it is for the neighbouring country to find a way out of its economic troubles.
In an exclusive interview with ANI, the minister referred to India's assistance to Sri Lanka during the economic crisis faced by the island country and said it is a very different relationship.
"I think Pakistan's future is largely determined by Pakistan's actions and by Pakistan's choices. Nobody reaches a difficult situation suddenly and without cause. It is for them to find a way out. Our relationship today is not one where we can be relevant directly to that process," Jaishankar said in response to queries on Pakistan.
Pakistan is grappling with economic difficulties including dwindling forex reserves, high inflation and sharp depreciation of its currency. It is rolling out higher taxes to get the IMF bailout package.
Jaishankar referred to the goodwill for Sri Lanka and sentiments among people in relation to Pakistan. Islamabad has been sponsoring cross-border terrorism in India which has severely impacted bilateral ties. The minister said India is willing to provide assistance to its neighbours in case of difficulty.
"If I were, for example, to compare it to Sri Lanka, it is a very different relationship. With Sri Lanka still, there is a lot of goodwill in this country. There is naturally neighbours' concerns and worry but there is also a feeling look we have to help them to get through this. Tomorrow if something happens to some other neighbours that would be the case as well. But you know what the sentiment is there in the country for Pakistan," Jaishankar said.
India had provided 4.5 billion USD in assistance to Sri Lanka to help it cope with the difficult economic situation last year. Last month, India became the first country to hand over its letter of support for the debt restructuring of Sri Lanka to the International Monetary Fund.
( With inputs from ANI )
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