| Terms ‘formal communication’ of foreign official as blatant interference in Pakistan’s internal affairs | Expresses grave concern over language used in ‘threat letter’ | Pakistan to issue strong demarche to the country in question
From Mahnoor
Makhdoom
ISLAMABAD: The National Security Committee (NSC) on Thursday said that the communication of a senior official of a foreign country to Pakistan’s Ambassador “amounted to blatant interference in the internal affairs of the country by the country in question, which was unacceptable under any circumstances”.
This was stated in an official press release issued shortly after Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired the 37th meeting of the NSC today at the PM’s House.
The meeting was summoned in light of an alleged threat letter by a foreign government that had warned Pakistan of consequences if the no-confidence motion against PM Imran failed.
National Security Adviser Moeed Yusuf briefed the committee on the formal communication of a senior official of a foreign country to Pakistan’s Ambassador in the said country in a formal meeting, which was duly conveyed by the Ambassador to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The statement said that the NSC expressed grave concern at the communication, terming the language used by the foreign official as undiplomatic.
The committee concluded that the communication amounted to blatant interference in the internal affairs of Pakistan by the country in question, which was unacceptable under any circumstances.
The statement said that it decided that Pakistan will issue a strong demarche to the country in question both in Islamabad and in the country’s capital through proper channel in keeping with diplomatic norms.
Participants also endorsed the cabinet’s decision in the special cabinet meeting held on March 30, 2022 under the prime minister’s chairmanship to take parliament into confidence through an in-camera briefing of the NSC of parliament.
The meeting was attended by federal ministers of Defence, Energy, Information & Broadcasting, Interior, Finance, Human Rights, Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Services Chiefs, National Security Adviser and senior officers.
A day earlier, the premier had shared the “threat letter” he talked of with cabinet members in an emergency meeting. The meeting was not attended by PTI’s two major allies — MQM-P and Balochistan Awami Party (BAP).
Meanwhile, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry also invited a group of journalists to meet PM Imran Khan where selected details of the letter were shared with them.
The premier had said that a Pakistani envoy posted in a foreign country wrote the memo that he flashed on March 27 at a PTI rally and termed it “threatening”, sources told Geo News.
The premier, while interacting with journalists, said the envoy had sent the letter to Pakistan after he met an official of a foreign country, according to sources.
PM Imran Khan said the memo was shared with the military leadership and mentioned that the tone used in the cable was “threatening.”
The prime minister said the memo would be shared with parliamentarians during an in-camera session, but noted that the name of the country that “threatened” Pakistan could not be shared — as national security laws are applicable.
Meanwhile, Speaker of the National Assembly Asad Qaiser took to his Twitter handle and said that if the Parliamentary leaders from the government and Opposition sides agree, the issue of the “sensitive letter” can be discussed at an in-camera meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security.
Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives Asad Umar, who attended the briefing, according to sources, told the journalists that the memo mentions that if the no-confidence motion passes, everything will be forgiven for Pakistan.
Umar further said that the letter mentions that “in case of its failure, the problems for Pakistan will increase.”
