A leaked diplomatic cypher has reignited political controversy in Pakistan nearly four years after former Prime Minister Imran Khan was removed from power through a no-confidence vote.
The full text of the classified diplomatic communication, published by US-based investigative outlet Drop Site, reportedly documents a March 2022 conversation between then Pakistan ambassador to the United States Asad Majeed Khan and senior US diplomat Donald Lu.
The leaked document has drawn fresh attention because the conversation allegedly took place just weeks before Imran Khan lost the no-confidence motion that eventually led to the collapse of his government.
According to the published cypher, Donald Lu expressed concern over Pakistan’s “aggressively neutral position” on the Russia-Ukraine conflict and reportedly suggested that relations with Washington could improve if Imran Khan was removed from office.
“I think if the no-confidence vote against the Prime Minister succeeds, all will be forgiven in Washington,” the cypher quotes Lu as saying. The document further suggests that Khan’s Moscow visit during the early days of the Russia-Ukraine war had created tensions with the United States and Europe.
Imran Khan had travelled to Moscow on February 23-24, 2022, at a time when Russia launched its military invasion of Ukraine. The timing of the visit triggered strong international reactions and intensified geopolitical scrutiny on Pakistan’s foreign policy stance.
However, the leaked document also indicates that ambassador Asad Majeed Khan defended Pakistan’s position during the conversation. According to the report, he clarified that the Moscow visit had been planned before the invasion and stressed that Pakistan’s Ukraine policy was an institutional decision rather than a personal initiative by Imran Khan.
The cypher reportedly mentions that Imran Khan had “clearly regretted” the timing of the Moscow visit and insisted it should not be interpreted as support for Russia’s actions in Ukraine.
The revelations are significant because Imran Khan had repeatedly claimed after his removal that foreign powers, particularly the United States, were involved in efforts to destabilise his government. At the time, Pakistan’s National Security Committee rejected allegations of a foreign conspiracy and stated that no evidence had been found to support the claims.
The newly released document has now revived debate across political and diplomatic circles over whether international pressure played a role in Pakistan’s 2022 political crisis.
Imran Khan, currently lodged in Adiala Jail, has continued to seek release on humanitarian grounds while his party maintains that he was removed through a coordinated political campaign.
The leaked cypher has once again placed Pakistan’s foreign relations, internal political dynamics and ties with the United States under intense public scrutiny.
