- Saturday, March 01, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
Top diplomats from the US and UK on Tuesday (9) called for adherence to the “rule of law” in Pakistan after the arrest of its former prime minister Imran Khan triggered massive violence across the country.
US secretary of state Antony Blinken said in a joint news conference in Washington that they wanted to make sure that whatever happens in Pakistan is consistent with the rule of law and with the constitution of the land.
British foreign secretary James Cleverly, who is currently in the US, was present alongside Blinken and said that the UK enjoyed “a longstanding and close relationship” with Pakistan, a member of the Commonwealth. He said one wanted to see a peaceful democracy in the South Asian nation and adherence to the rule of law.
The diplomats did not want to make any further comment, with the British foreign secretary saying he was yet to be briefed fully on the situation in Pakistan.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre reiterated that Washington does not have a position on one political candidate or party versus another, Pakistan’s Dawn reported. She said this when asked about the current situation in Pakistan, which has been one of the US’s trusted allies in Asia for a long time till their ties started deteriorating over the past few decades.
The United Nations said on the same day that it would monitor the situation in Pakistan following Khan’s arrest to ensure that all political figures in the country were given a fair treatment, the Dawn report added.
“Our concern is making sure that all of the political figures in Pakistan are treated fairly and, of course, that the due process is followed,” deputy spokesman for the UN secretary-general Farhan Haq said when asked about Khan’s arrest.
Amnesty International, a London-based rights group, shared a statement in Washington issued by its headquarters.
“The clashes unfolding between Imran Khan’s supporters and security enforcement following the former prime minister’s arrest risk several human rights violations,” it warned, according to Dawn.
Zalmay Khalilzad, a former US diplomat who negotiated the peace deal with the Taliban, said in a tweet, “The arrest of Imran Khan is deplorable and will have far-ranging consequences. I condemn it in the strongest terms.
“It’s painful to watch a country so rich in potential, with an ancient heritage of culture, natural resources, an entrepreneurial spirit and hard-working people, repeatedly be thrown into chaos by its own dysfunctional elites — civilian and military — with some exceptions.”
He also urged Pakistan’s allies such as China, Saudi Arabia and the UAE to help defuse the situation.
Khan was dramatically arrested in relation to a corruption case outside the high court in Islamabad where he had gone for two hearings. He was surrounded and arrested by armoured personnel and whisked away in a vehicle.
