There's no truth to this: US on Pak PM's claim of 'foreign conspiracy' to oust him

Agencies | Istanbul  

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

The US state department rubbished the allegations by Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan that America was involved in the no-confidence motion tabled in the National Assembly earlier this week. State department spokesperson Ned Price asserted that there was no truth to the allegations, insisting that the US respects and supports Pakistan’s constitutional process and the rule of law.

Price’s comments were echoed by the White House communications director, stating that there is "absolutely no truth" to Khan’s allegations of the US working with the Opposition in Pakistan to remove him from power.

Khan has been hyping a so-called threat letter from a “foreign country”, which he, in an address to the nation, said was the US. Referring to the letter which he is yet to publicly release, the Pakistan Prime Minister, whose fate looks all but sealed, claimed that it was evidence of an “international conspiracy” to unseat him.

“We are closely following developments in Pakistan, and we respect, we support Pakistan’s constitutional process and the rule of law,” Price responded to the allegations.

The response comes against the backdrop of a late-night development where Pakistan’s Foreign Office summoned US Acting Deputy Chief of Mission Richard Snelsire and handed him a demarche to protest the “foreign conspiracy” to unseat Khan.

Pakistan's top security body had earlier confirmed its intention to issue a strong demarche to a country, that it did not name, over the letter.

Thanks to Khan and his advisers, Pakistan’s relationship with the US is in tatters, especially after declining an invitation to US President Joe Biden’s democracy summit in December and Islamabad’s continued interference in the Taliban set-up, which the former cricketer once saw as a victory.

Khan said that Sunday will be a defining day in the country’s political history as he used words like “traitors” and “handlers” for opposition and foreign countries. Sunday could well turn out defining day, if not for Pakistan, at least for Imran Khan, whose exit from the top post is looking imminent.