Pakistan’s military has today denied allegations that the US conspired to prevent the deposed former prime minister, Imran Khan, from obtaining a vote of confidence in parliament.
Han, 69, who ruled the nuclear-armed South Asian country of 220 million people for three and a half years, argues that Washington set up this conspiracy because he visited Moscow, defying the advice of the United States. Washington denies the accusation that it was involved in Khan’s impeachment.
He was in Moscow the day the Ukrainian invasion began
Khan met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 24, when Russian forces began invading neighboring Ukraine.
Khan had previously managed to thwart the no-confidence game, claiming that the National Security Committee, composed of civilian and military leaders, had endorsed the plot against him.
Pakistan Army Spokesman Major General Babar Iftikhar denied Khan’s claim.
In his press conference, İftikhar referred to a National Security Committee statement shared earlier this month.
The statement shared concerns about the non-diplomatic language used in a correspondence from a “foreign country” about the vote of no confidence. It was discussed whether this country, whose name was not given in Pakistan, was the USA or not.
“You can clearly see in this statement whether there is any word to set up a conspiracy. I think there is not,” said İftikhar.
On April 10, the lower house of Pakistan’s parliament, the National Assembly, voted to remove Khan from office.
Opposition parties and analysts say the Pakistani military helped Imran Khan win elections in 2018. However, both the Khan and the army deny this claim. According to experts, military support for Khan dwindled after a dispute over the appointment of the country’s new intelligence chief late last year.
Khan’s former Information Minister, Fuad Chaudri, has called for the establishment of a judicial commission to investigate the accusation that the US conspired to overthrow Khan.
Did the Chief of the General Staff mediate?
Iftikhar also denied Khan’s claim that the Chief of General Staff of Pakistan, General Kamar Javid Bajwa, had offered to mediate in the stalemate he was experiencing with the opposition.
On the contrary, iftikhar said that Khan had asked Bajwa to convey to the opposition on his behalf that if the no-confidence motion was withdrawn, he would call for early elections.
“Bacva went to the opposition and conveyed this request, and the opposition parties said that they would not take such a step after a detailed meeting and said, ‘We will continue as we planned,'” İftikhar said.
“The US military did not request a base”
A spokesman for the military also explained that after the withdrawal of US-led forces from Afghanistan last August, Washington did not request a military base in Pakistan. Han’s party claimed that Washington turned its back on Han after he said “absolutely no” when asked if he would give the bases to the Americans in a television interview.
Han was demanding early elections by keeping the conspiracy allegations on the agenda in his rallies. Parliamentary elections in Pakistan will be held in 2023.