(Bloomberg) -- The U.S. denied claims from Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan that the Biden administration is seeking to oust his government, which seems to have lost its majority in parliament ahead of a no-confidence vote on Sunday.
In a televised address Thursday night, Khan named the U.S. as the country behind a threatening letter he's been hyping up after key allies deserted him. He said it's evidence of an “international conspiracy” to unseat him, even though he has yet to publicly release the document. In separate developments, Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said “requisite demarches have been made” and the country's National Security Committee, which includes top civil and military leaders, termed the alleged interference as “unacceptable.”
“To an independent country, a message like this which apparently is against the prime minister is actually against our nation,” Khan said in his speech.
Asked for a reaction on Thursday, U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price said there was “no truth” to the allegations. “We are closely following developments in Pakistan, and we respect, we support Pakistan's constitutional process and the rule of law,” he said.
Mysterious Bill Gates Photo Highlights Imran Khan's Army Crisis
Khan is fighting to win back support after local media said his opponents pulled 196 lawmakers over to their side, well more than the 172 needed in Parliament's lower house National Assembly to vote out the former cricket star. The opposition has named Shehbaz Sharif, the brother of self-exiled former leader Nawaz Sharif, to lead the next coalition government if Khan is voted out.
The prime minister “is shifting the burden,” said Zafar Nawaz Jaspal, a professor at the Quaid-i-Azam University in Islamabad. “It could be a political argument which may be contributing to Khan's popularity among the anti-American forces within the country.”
Khan's backing has slipped in recent months as he deals with Asia's second-highest inflation and rising tensions with the military, which remains a powerful force in Pakistani politics. The prime minister has had a tense relationship with the U.S., declining an invitation to President Joe Biden's democracy summit in December and hailing the Taliban's victory in Afghanistan. The two leaders still haven't spoken by phone.
At the same time, Khan has boosted ties with China and Russia -- even meeting with Vladimir Putin in Moscow just hours after he ordered troops into Ukraine. Shehbaz Sharif has vowed to improve ties with the U.S. and European Union if he wins.
Pakistan Default Risk Soars, Currency Sinks on Political Turmoil
The political turmoil is roiling Pakistani markets. The nation's default risk as measured by five-year credit-default swaps has climbed to the highest since 2013 after nearly doubling last month. The rupee is trading at a record low against the U.S. dollar and economists say the tussle may hamper the government's efforts to negotiate the release of the International Monetary Fund's loan installment.
Pakistan's military, once a top recipient of American arms, has also sought a more balanced foreign policy after becoming increasingly reliant on China for weapons. Khan clashed with top generals after publicly disagreeing with the army chief over a key promotion, undermining a key relationship that helped him stay in power.
The former cricketer's political opponents criticized Khan's action of blaming the U.S.
“This is not a game. This is not cricket,” Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, co-chairman of the opposition Pakistan People's Party, told reporters in parliament on Thursday. “We need to think about Pakistan first and such childish tactics must end.”
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