Pakistani Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has agreed to share the alleged letter containing a “threat” against his incumbent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government with Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial, Federal Minister Asad Umar said on Tuesday.
The Federal Minister said that the secret letter refers to a no-confidence motion against the PM and claimed it was received before opposition leaders submitted the no-trust move. He added that it also bluntly states that if the no-confidence motion fails and Imran Khan continues to hold his position, the consequences will be dangerous.
BIG News here - Federal Minister @Asad_Umar sharing details of the "letter" PM Imran Khan spoke about the the Islamabad Jalsa. There is a huge threat - We will need to stand with PM Imran Khan more than ever to defeat this. #عدم_اعتماد_بیرونی_سازش pic.twitter.com/Kz7rxpmbVW
— Jibran Ilyas (@agentjay2009) March 29, 2022
“No-confidence motion and foreign hand are interlinked, these are not two separate things,” Umar said. Without a doubt, former PM and the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) leader Nawaz Sharif is involved in the “conspiracy” against PM Khan, Umar asserted.
Further elaborating on the origins and content of the letter, an undisclosed senior government source official told The News International that the letter is likely not a direct message from high-ranking American officials, but rather a diplomatic cable sent by Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States (US), Asad Majeed Khan, to Islamabad on March 7, wherein the ambassador allegedly provided “direct quotes” by US officials regarding Khan’s stance on the United States (US). The unnamed official said he believes the letter was received just a day before the opposition requested the National Assembly to launch a vote of no-confidence against the PM.
“This telegram message is real. Although its contents have not been shared, the message was that as long as the incumbent government is in power, there can be no substantial change in relations,” he said. The official is understood to be referring to US-Pakistan relations, since the letter is believed to have originated from Washington.
Imran Khan is leveraging “the letter” for full political effect. If he loses the no confidence vote, he’ll say he was victimized by an int’l conspiracy. If he survives, he’ll say he defied the conspiracy.
— Michael Kugelman (@MichaelKugelman) March 29, 2022
The more ambiguous he is about the letter, the more effective this’ll be.
US-Pakistan ties have become increasingly tense under the Biden administration. Pakistani National Security Adviser Moeed Yusuf criticised American President Joe Biden for failing to speak with PM Khan about the conflict in Afghanistan, despite Pakistan’s critical role in the peace process in the war-torn country. Meanwhile, his predecessor Trump suspended up to $2 billion in security assistance to Pakistan, a decision that has been kept in place by Biden. Likewise, in September, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the US would be “re-evaluating” its ties with Pakistan as some of its interests are “in conflict with ours.”
The US is concerned about Pakistan’s decision to excuse human rights abuses by the Taliban as well as its growing ties with China and Turkey. In fact, in December, Pakistani PM Khan declined to participate in Biden’s ‘Democracy Summit,’ allegedly over the exclusion of China and Turkey.
Against this backdrop, China has expressed concern about US interference in Pakistan offered its “full and extraordinary support.” It added that it “strongly opposes” interference in the internal affairs of other countries, which it said is something the US “always” does.
The existence of the controversial letter was first made public by the PM during a PTI rally at the parade ground on March 27. During the event, Khan had waved the letter and claimed that some people within the country were working to undermine him. He also mentioned discussing its contents in off-the-record discussions.
#BREAKING: PM says he will show the letter which contains proof of a foreign conspiracy to dislodge his government to senior journalists today as well as representatives to his allied parties. #ImranKhan #imrankhanPTI #PTIGovernment #Imranist #MQMP #CheryPakistan #Karachi pic.twitter.com/xu8a9WvLG7
— Hamza Azhar Salam (@HamzaAzhrSalam) March 30, 2022
The Chief of Pakistan’s National Command Operation Center mentioned that only select civil and military leaders have seen the letter due to its sensitivity and status of being a national secret. A majority of the Cabinet members have not been shown its contents.
The secrecy surrounding the letter has fuelled rumours about its authenticity. The opposition as well as security officials have cast doubts asking why it has not been presented before the National Security Committee of the cabinet.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz Sharif wrote on Twitter: “Offering to show the letter to the chief justice of the Supreme Court by this ‘fake former’ prime minister is part of his ‘save me’ call. Kindly the Supreme Court should keep itself away from this mischief and evil,”
Following ridicule from the opposition on the authenticity of the matter his “evil intentions,” Khan has agreed to share the letter with the CJP “when the need might arise.”
The conspiracy of overthrowing the PTI government is not unprecedented. Khan has previously called the opposition’s attempt to oust him a “foreign-funded conspiracy” and accused them of organising the trust vote to secure a National Reconciliation Ordinance, which would provide them with immunity from legal action for corruption and money laundering.
It now appears that Khan has somewhat consolidated his position ahead of the trust vote. On Tuesday, Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar submitted his resignation to the embattled PM, who has replaced him with Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) leader Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi. According to Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Farrukh Habib, Elahi met with PM Khan and settled “all issues,” following which the PML-Q declared their support for the PTI government.
Despite having a meagre five seats in the NA, the PML-Q is a critical coalition party for Khan, as it has vowed to work with other coalition partners to gather support in the upcoming trust vote. The PTI has 155 members in the NA, with its coalition partners Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), PML-Q, Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), and the Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) having seven, five, five, and three seats, respectively. Therefore, it now appears that Khan has the support of 175 MNAs, enough to guarantee his survival in the April 3 trust vote.