‘Pakistani politics for Pakistanis’: US sidesteps Imran Khan ouster claims after leaked cable

The United States State Department has declined to directly comment on the contents of a classified diplomatic cable linked to former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan’s long-standing allegations of a foreign-backed conspiracy to remove him from power, saying Pakistan’s political future is for its own people to decide.

Responding to queries from ANI after the publication of the controversial document by US investigative outlet Drop Site News, a State Department spokesperson said Pakistani politics was “a matter for the Pakistani people to decide”. However, the spokesperson stopped short of addressing the alleged remarks attributed to senior American diplomat Donald Lu in the cable.

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The issue has once again brought focus back to the political storm that erupted in Pakistan in 2022 when Khan claimed that Washington was involved in efforts to topple his government. The latest report has revived debate around the so-called “cipher controversy”, which remained one of the most politically charged episodes during Khan’s tenure and after his removal from office.

According to the report by Drop Site News, the classified diplomatic cable, identified as Cable I-0678, was marked “secret” and “no circulation”. Dated March 7, 2022, it reportedly detailed a luncheon meeting in Washington between Pakistan’s then ambassador to the US, Asad Majeed Khan, and Donald Lu, who was serving as the US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs.

The meeting took place shortly after Imran Khan visited Moscow on February 24, 2022, the same day Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The cable reportedly stated that Khan’s Russia visit had triggered serious concerns within the US administration.

According to the document cited in the report, Lu allegedly suggested that bilateral tensions could ease if Khan was removed through a parliamentary no-confidence motion. The phrase “all will be forgiven” was later referenced by Pakistan’s ambassador while describing the conversation.

The assessment section of the telegram reportedly carried a warning from Ambassador Asad Majeed Khan, who wrote that Lu “could not have conveyed such a strong demarche without the express approval of the White House”. The diplomat also concluded that the US official had “spoken out of turn on Pakistan’s internal political process”.

Imran Khan had publicly raised the conspiracy allegations in 2022 during a rally organised by his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party in Islamabad. At the event, he waved a document which he claimed contained evidence of foreign involvement in efforts to remove his government.

Khan was eventually ousted through a no-confidence vote in Pakistan’s Parliament on April 9, 2022.

The United States had repeatedly denied the allegations at the time. Donald Lu had dismissed the claims surrounding the cipher as a “conspiracy theory, lie, and complete falsehood”.