On Friday, the Pakistani National Security Committee (NSC) confirmed that there was no foreign “regime change conspiracy” to oust former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, who was unseated via a no-confidence motion on April 10.
The report investigated Khan’s allegations of being in possession of a “threat letter” that referred to a no-confidence motion against him before the opposition leaders submitted the motion in the National Assembly (NA) on March 28. Khan claimed that United States (US) Assistant Secretary of State Donald Lu was the foreign official behind the alleged conspiracy, declaring that Lu told the Pakistani ambassador, Asad Majeed Khan, that there would be consequences if Khan was not removed via a trust vote.
National Security Committee (NSC) has exposed confirmed there was no foreign conspiracy against imran khan, truth cannot be suppressed - says @NawazSharifMNS pic.twitter.com/lrA8isMUvO
— Murtaza Ali Shah (@MurtazaViews) April 22, 2022
A press release by the PM’s office said that the NSC discussed details of the diplomatic cable from Lu in depth. Asad Majeed Khan, who also attended the meeting, “briefed the Committee on the context and content of his telegram.” Thereafter, the NSC conducted a detailed review of the “contents of the communication, the assessments received, and the conclusions presented by the security agencies.”
In this regard, the statement said that the NSC had “reaffirmed the decision in the last meeting” and once again reiterated that there was “no evidence of any conspiracy.”
National Security Committee statement concluded that there was no foreign conspiracy against previous government but it is silent on the threat from US diplomat. It is also silent on the difference between original telegram and the letter @ImranKhanPTI showed to public pic.twitter.com/K2ph2gf7qW
— Hamid Mir (@HamidMirPAK) April 22, 2022
The meeting was chaired by PM Shehbaz Sharif and was attended by several high-ranking political and army officials, including Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar, Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa, and Joint Chief of Staff Committee General Nadeem Raza.
Responding to the NSC’s conclusion, US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Jalina Porter remarked that Washington welcomes Pakistan’s acknowledgement that there was “absolutely no truth” to Khan’s claims. She also underlined that the US values its “longstanding cooperation with Pakistan” and viewed “ a strong, prosperous, and democratic Pakistan as critical to US interests.”
I want to thank all our social media warriors who have valiantly taken our fight against US regime change conspiracy forward on all social media platforms.Continue carrying on our movement for Pak's sovereignty & democracy. You are our frontline warriors.#MarchAgainstImportedGovt
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) April 24, 2022
In fact, US State Department spokesperson Ned Price has previously stressed that there is “no truth whatsoever” to Khan’s allegations, asserting that the US always supports the “peaceful upholding of the constitutional and democratic principles” across the world and does not support one political party over the other.
The NSC’s decision reaffirms Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director-General Major General Babar Iftikhar’s statement on April 14, wherein he declared that the NSC’s report did not have any mention of a “conspiracy.”
Pakistan Trust Vote Coverage:
- Pakistani High Court Orders Release of Information on Gifts Received by Imran Khan
- Imran Khan Supporters Hold Worldwide Protests Against ‘Imported Regime’ of Shehbaz Sharif
- New Pakistani PM Sharif Says Peace With India Impossible Until Kashmir Issue Resolved
- Pakistan: Shehbaz Sharif Inches Closer Towards PM Post Following Imran Khan’s Ouster
- Pakistan SC Rules Dissolution of NA “Unconstitutional”, Trust Vote Against PM Khan on Sat.
- Pakistan Imran Khan Dissolves Parliament and Calls for Early Election
- Pakistan PM Imran Khan Loses Majority Just Days Before Trust Vote as MQM-P Severs Ties
- Pakistan PM Imran Khan Insists on Foreign Conspiracy With Alleged Threat Letter
- Pakistan PM Khan Succumbs to Pressure From Within Coalition, Ousts Punjab CM Buzdar
- Pakistan PM Imran Khan Claims “Foreign Money” Fuelling Opposition’s Goal of Toppling Gov’t
- Pakistan Interior Minister Warns PTI “Turncoats” of Early Elections Ahead of Trust Vote
- Pakistan Army Chief Bajwa Reportedly Asks PM Imran Khan to Resign After OIC Conference
- Embattled Pakistan PM Imran Khan Calls Army “Animals” for ‘Neutral’ Stance on Trust Vote
- Pakistan PM Imran Khan Scrambles For Support as Opposition Submits No-Confidence Motion
- Pakistani PM Imran Khan Warns Opposition of Consequences of Failed No-Trust Vote
In contrast, Khan claimed that the NSC’s latest statement has merely confirmed his claims about a foreign conspiracy of regime change, arguing that it has proved that a telegram was received from the Pakistani embassy in Washington. In a press briefing, he argued that the Committee’s conclusions supported his claim that the diplomatic communication was genuine and that Lu had threatened Pakistani envoy Asad Majeed Khan. “I will go a step forward and say that [Lu] was arrogant [and] the Joe Biden administration official told our ambassador that Imran Khan will have to be removed through a no-confidence motion,” he added.
Later, Khan urged the Supreme Court to look into the telegram, hold an open hearing, and “probe the cable” to avoid other governments from succumbing to such conspiracies and ploys.
Allah-ul-Haq, in the meeting of the National Security Committee, it was proved again that the post is true and it was threatened and given arrogantly. Imran Khan #ImranKhanMediaTalk #امپورٹڈ_حکومت_نامنظور pic.twitter.com/1iVIsXsHxZ
— ImranKhanRiaz (@ImranKhanRiaz1) April 23, 2022
Responding to Khan’s statement, ISPR chief Iftikhar warned that the army would push back against any conspiracies that threaten national security. “If anyone tries to hatch any conspiracy against Pakistan, we will not let it succeed,” he underscored.
Against this backdrop, Khan has called on members of his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) party to join the “true freedom” march to stand against the incumbent government. He did not announce the exact dates of the march and merely urged party leaders to begin preparing for the event. However, his supporters have been holding large-scale protests across various cities over the past two weeks.