Gatecrash or misrepresentation? Did Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif interrupt Putin's closed-door meeting? Fact check

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif faced heavy trolling on social media after a video claiming he had "gatecrashed" a closed-door meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan went viral on Friday. The video was later deleted, claiming that it may have been a "misrepresentation of the events".

According to a post earlier shared by RT India, Sharif had waited for around 40 minutes for a meeting with President Putin at the International Forum for Peace and Trust in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan.




The post claimed that the Pakistani PM then walked into an ongoing meeting between Putin and Erdogan and stayed for about 10 minutes before leaving without securing a separate interaction.

"PM Sharif waited for over 40 minutes for President Putin before growing tired and gate-crashing the Russian leader's meeting with Erdogan. He left ten minutes later," RT India had earlier posted on X.

The video triggered widespread ridicule online, with many users questioning Sharif’s diplomatic conduct and calling the episode a "huge international embarrassment !!", especially at a time when Pakistan has been trying to strengthen ties with Russia.



RT India later deleted the post and issued a clarification, stating that, "We deleted an earlier post about Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif waiting to meet Vladimir Putin at the Peace and Trust Forum in Turkmenistan. The post may have been a misrepresentation of the events."

Russian state-owned news agency RIA Novosti reported that Putin and Erdogan continued their talks privately after members of both delegations had exited the room, but made no mention of any alleged "gatecrashing" by Sharif.

Meanwhile, Sharif shared a post on X highlighting his interaction with Turkish President Erdogan at the event. "Met my dear brother, President @RTErdogan, on the sidelines of the International Forum on Peace and Trust in Ashgabat. It is always a pleasure to exchange views with a time-tested and trusted friend of Pakistan," Sharif wrote on X.

He added that the two leaders reaffirmed "the deep, historic bonds between Pakistan and Turkiye" and discussed cooperation in "trade, energy, defence, connectivity, and investment," along with regional and global issues including Gaza and Afghanistan.

The International Forum for Peace and Trust in Ashgabat saw participation from several world leaders, including Putin, Erdogan and Sharif, amid ongoing geopolitical discussions and diplomatic engagements.