ISLAMABAD: Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar and theForeign Office threw their weight behind the “professional assessment” byAmbassador Asad Majeed Khan during a meeting of the National SecurityCommittee (NSC) which was held on Friday.
In a statement, Hina Rabbani Khar said that Ambassador Asad Majeed Khan wasquestioned about the cypher during the NSC meeting and he appraised themeeting in detail about the content of the cypher he had earlier sent tothe Foreign Office.
“The institutions and correspondents agree that the cypher cannot be calleda conspiracy,” Khar added. She said that on the basis of the language usedin the cypher, the ambassador has suggested making a demarche to the UnitedStates, as he stated the language used in the cypher was “unusual”. Shesaid that Pakistan’s Ambassador has performed his duty in a professionalmanner. She further stated that in the cypher issues including Afghanistan,Ukraine and Pakistan-US relations were discussed.
She added that the previous government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)called this cypher and sometimes a letter. “If there was any such a majorthreat, then why didn’t they lodge a protest with the US embassy inIslamabad?” she asked,
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Khar also questioned as to why the PTI government was sitting silent formany days after receiving the message. “The previous government lied to theextent that it is felt as a truth,” she added.
Meanwhile, responding to media queries, Foreign Office spokesperson AsimIftikhar made it clear that Ambassador Khan briefed the NSC about thecontext and content of the Cypher Telegram in question, and shared hisprofessional assessment. “His briefing and assessment are accuratelyreflected in the statement issued at the conclusion of the NSC meetingtoday (Friday),” the spokesperson added.