Pakistani PM Imran Khan Accuses US of Trying to Oust Him

Pakistan has been on the edge since opposition parties on March 8 submitted the no-confidence motion before the National Assembly secretariat.

On Friday, the National Assembly’s crucial session on the no-trust motion against embattled Khan was adjourned by the speaker without tabling of the resolution, amid vociferous protests from opposition lawmakers.

No Pakistan premier has ever seen out a full term, and Khan is facing the biggest challenge to his rule since being elected in 2018, with opponents accusing him of economic mismanagement and foreign-policy bungling.

In his speech, Khan lashed out at the United States, claiming Washington had conspired with the Pakistani opposition against him and that America wants him, personally, gone.

"America has - oh, not America but a foreign country I can't name. I mean from a foreign country, we received a message," he said.

Local media have reported the message was in a briefing letter from Pakistan's ambassador to Washington recording a senior US official telling him they felt relations would be better if Khan left office.

"They say that 'our anger will vanish if Imran Khan loses this no-confidence vote'," he said.