Lettergate: Tarin assured Donald Lu PTI govt to live up to its promise

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has finally named the high-ranking United States official who, he says, was behind the ‘conspiracy’ against him. US Assistant Secretary of States Donald Lu had told the Pakistan ambassador in Washington that Pakistan-US relations could improve only if Imran Khan was removed from power, according to the prime minister.

The meeting between Donald Lu and Pakistan Ambassador, Asad Majeed Khan, was held in Washington on March 7 and details were shared by the ambassador with Islamabad on the same day in a communique, which Imran Khan says is evidence of the ‘conspiracy.’ The prime minister in his recent interviews and televised appearances has revealed the details of the meeting, local media reported.

Donald Lu’s last major interaction with a Pakistani official came in October 2021 when a Pakistani finance ministry delegation was holding talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington.

Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin was leading the talks which dragged on for days as Pakistan tried to address the Fund’s concerns to seek approval of the $1 billion loan tranche. The IMF nod is important for any developing country as other lenders take that into account.

On October 15, Shaukat Tarin and Donald Lu held talks at the Pakistan Embassy in Washington and the finance minister assured the US official that the PTI government would live up to its promise of economic reforms.

Pakistan Embassy issued a statement on the meeting between Donald Lu and Shaukat Tarin, which stated, “Assistant Secretary Lu appreciated the government’s commitment to economic reform and reciprocated the Finance Minister’s desire for greater trade and investment ties between the two countries.” State Bank of Pakistan Governor Reza Baqar was also at the meeting. The staff-level agreement between Pakistan and the IMF was concluded over a month after the meeting.

It is not clear exactly what role Lu had played after the October meeting, but the United States, being the largest contributor to the Fund, enjoys considerable leverage. 

Moreover, it is also unclear what the state of relations were between the Pakistani diplomatic mission in Washington and Lu in the aftermath of the March 7 meeting because just ten days later, on March 16, the Assistant Secretary of State attended via video call an event organised by the Pakistani embassy to recognize and appreciate prominent women who are leading in their respective fields.

After addressing the event along with Congressperson Sheila Jackson Lee, Pakistani Ambassador Majeed had even thanked Lu and Lee for sharing their perspectives on the matter.