WASHINGTON: The US State Department has welcomed the National Security Committee’s (NSC) statement on the so-called ‘Lettergate’ scandal, noting it confirmed what US officials have been saying all along that there was no conspiracy behind the removal of Imran Khan-led government.

The NSC met in Islamabad on Friday and issued a statement saying it found no evidence to support former PM Khan’s claim that there was a US conspiracy to topple his government. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chaired the meeting, attended by senior military and civilian officers.

“We have continued to say all along, there’s absolutely no truth to those rumours, so we welcome this statement,” said State Department spokesperson Jalina Porter when asked to comment on the NSC statement at a Friday afternoon news briefing in Washington.

“And I would also like to underscore that the United States values our long standing cooperation with Pakistan and has always viewed a strong, prosperous, and democratic Pakistan as critical to US interests,” she added.

Published in Dawn, April 24th, 2022