US-Pakistan-Bangladesh: US’ ‘Imran regime change’ plot shows how Washington responds to anyone who oppose its interest
Anup Sinha
is a strategic and security affairs researcher and freelance columnist specializing in South Asian Affairs
A United States-based news outlet ‘The Intercept’ has published what it claims to be the details of a diplomatic “cypher” – or a secret cable – that suggests the US administration wanted to remove former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan from power last year.
Khan was sacked from power in April 2022 after he lost a no-confidence vote in parliament. He alleged he knew of the “cypher” while he was in office which, according to him, proved the US hatched a conspiracy with the help of his political opponents and the Pakistani military to remove him.
Khan is currently serving a three-year sentence and has been barred from politics for five years after he was convicted of corruption charges by a court in the capital Islamabad last week. He denies the charges and says the action against him is aimed at stopping him from contesting elections, expected later this year.
On Wednesday, The Intercept news website published purported details of a conversation between Pakistan’s then-ambassador to the US, Asad Majeed, and Donald Lu, the Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, on March 7 last year.
The USA had threatened to isolate Pakistan if Imran Khan was not removed from the post of Prime Minister. There was a decision at a secret meeting of the US State Department to topple Imran Khan as Pakistan remained neutral on the Russia-Ukraine war.
In April 2022, the Pakistani Government led by Imran Khan was overthrown due to a vote of confidence in the parliament. Khan claimed that the United States (US) conspired to overthrow the Government.[1] Although Washington denies these allegations, most Pakistani people believe in this “conspiracy theory.”
In recent days, it has been proven in many ways that Pakistanis endorse Khan’s claims against the United States. Many citizens supporting Khan organized anti-government protests in the capital city of Islamabad. During the protests, Khan’s supporters raised their voices against the current government of the United States and Pakistan. Khan brought up the allegations of US conspiracy again during the protests. In addition, conspiracy theories came to the fore in Islamabad, and all rallies were held throughout Pakistan after Khan was overthrown on April 10, 2022.[2]
Khan’s political entry as a famous cricketer has mobilized Pakistan’s younger generation. Because the people of the country have been taking an anti-American stance for a long time. During the change of government, commodity prices increased due to the economic tension in Pakistan, which triggered various dynamics. Maliha Lodhi, Pakistan’s former Ambassador to the United States, said, “Khan was trying to use anti-US sentiment to gain public support for him.” made the statement.[3] Although Khan did not provide any evidence for the conspiracy theory, the public believed these theories. But now, after the revelation of the Intercept report, now issue is clear.
Donald Lu, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, is at the base of Khan’s allegations. Khan claims that Lu met with Pakistan’s Ambassador to Washington in March 2022, and in this meeting, the US official stated that Khan should be removed from the post of Prime Minister by a vote of no confidence. In a recent interview with CNN, Khan renewed his claims and stated that Donald Lu had threatened the Pakistani Ambassador, saying that if the government were not overthrown, Pakistan would have to suffer the consequences.[4] However, these accusations were denied by the Washington administration. Khan explained that the Pakistani Ambassador sent a message to the cabinet in March 2022.
Although Khan made a statement at a meeting of the Pakistan National Security Council (NSC), the government in the country changed, and Shahbaz Sharif, the leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), took over as the Prime Minister. Following the change of Prime Minister, the Council rejected Khan’s allegations and said, “No evidence of conspiracy was found in the message.” made the statement.
As it is known, on February 24, 2022, Russia launched an attack on Ukraine, and on the same day, Khan visited Moscow.[5] Khan believes that the US authorities reacted to him for this reason. In addition, Khan claims that the Pakistan army and Sharif are also involved in the American conspiracy.
Analysts argue that it is necessary to examine the country’s ten-year history to understand why the people of Pakistan believe this conspiracy theory. In the last decade, distrust between Pakistan and the USA has increased therefore, what has happened is a result of this insecurity.
Afghanistan is the leading cause of distrust in the United States among Pakistanis. The US army has been in Afghanistan for over 20 years, and Pakistan has been attacked many times by Afghan-linked terrorists during this period. This is why many Pakistanis believe the American presence in Afghanistan destabilized their country. When US President George W. Bush launched the “anti-terrorism” campaign against Afghanistan in 2001, Pakistan sided with the US as an ally. But as time passed, the distance between the two countries’ governments widened.
Islamabad believes that US drone attacks have killed thousands of people on Pakistani soil. In 2011, American forces killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of the Al-Qaeda, in an operation, they carried out in Abbottabad, Pakistan, but did not inform Islamabad about the process. This US behavior was totally unaccepted by the general Pakistanis. On the other hand, the Pakistani Government of the time considered this move of the USA as an insult. Moreover, in this process, a fake vaccination program was organized by the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and DNA data were collected to confirm the existence of Laden in Abbottabad under the name of the vaccination program. Although the program was seen as a successful work by the USA, it caused outrage among the people of Pakistan.
Moreover, in 2011, CIA officer Raymond Davis killed two Pakistanis in Lahore and said that these people tried to catch him at gunpoint, so he had to shoot.[6] However, the Pakistani Government described the incident as a murder, and Davis was arrested on charges of murder and illegally possessing weapons. The incident caused tension between the USA and Pakistan. In the explanation made by Washington, it was stated that if Davis were not released, USA’s aid that hundreds of millions of dollars to Pakistan would be cut. As a result, Davis was released in exchange for more than $2 million in compensation to the families of the killed Pakistani citizens.
All these developments have caused irreparable damage to the sense of trust between the parties. Pakistanis now believe that there are conspiracies against their country. For this reason, Khan’s claim is accepted as accurate. Some analysts state why Khan made anti-US moves related to the historical past of relations between the two countries. Indeed, according to Madiha Afzal, a researcher at the Brookings Institution, a US-based think tank, Khan’s allegations against the US are part of the long history of conspiracy theories in Pakistan. In his words, “Khan claims that Pakistan’s problems are rooted in the corruption of democratic governments that have served at different times.” Afzal reveals the world of thought of the former Prime Minister of Pakistan.[7]
As a result, Khan has enjoyed sympathy from most Pakistanis since he was ousted as Prime Minister. Because Khan’s supporters consider him an alternative to Pakistan’s traditional political leaders. Moreover, the power struggle of the political parties complicates the situation in Pakistan day by day. Because the policies implemented resulted in inflation in the long run. The rupee is depreciating against the dollar, and the government is increasing the tax amount to compensate for this deficit. The burden of all this is on the shoulders of Pakistani citizens. Because of this, many experts believe that Pakistan has benefited from the current crisis. Because thanks to the support he received from the public, his popularity of Khan reached an unprecedented level. In the case of Pakistan, USA supported Pak military for regime change which is very shameful for the modern civilization.
Now, they target Bangladesh PM sheikh Hasina for their vested geopolitical interest. When the country is advancing economically, the US intention is not justified. US Intention of Targeting Bangladesh Has Ill Motive. So former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and current Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina are caught in the same conspiracy. Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina made similar comments a few days ago. She directly said “America wants to remove me”.
While speaking at a discussion meeting at the National Press Club on August 9, 2023 Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen also said foreigners are conspiring against the government of Bangladesh. Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran and Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina have similar statements.
For example, the US suddenly became aware that human rights were being abused in some developing countries like Bangladesh and that democracy was not operating as it should.
If the answer is no, and the US was fully aware that there were indeed violations occurring in this nation from the beginning, why did the US authorities choose to turn a blind eye and refrain from warning the Bangladeshi government earlier that continued disregard or violations of these rights would result in consequences? On the other side, the US could be charged with involvement if they were aware of these events and did nothing about them. The question of why this diplomatic snub suddenly arises is only natural. Is it truly intended to help Bangladesh achieve democracy and human rights, or is there another purpose at play?
