• Fawad Chaudhry says he did not ask Imran Khan whether he met ex-diplomat or not.
• “There is no issue if Robin Raphel is in Pakistan as she has retired and has no links with US government,” he adds.
• Former minister says party wants diplomatic relations with United States on “equal footing”.

ISLAMABAD: Former information minister Fawad Chaudhry Monday neither accepted nor denied whether party chairman Imran Khan had a meeting with former US diplomat Robin Raphel at his residence. 

A day prior, the former prime minister had a meeting with Raphel at his Bani Gala residence in Islamabad, Geo News reported.

Speaking during a press conference at the federal capital along with former special assistant to the prime minister Sania Nishtar, Chaudhry said that he did not ask Khan if he met the ex-diplomat or not. 

“There is no issue if Robin Raphel is in Pakistan or visits this country as she has retired and has no links with the US government,” he highlighted. 

The former minister said that the party wants diplomatic relations with the United States on an equal footing. “We don’t want war with America and we acknowledge the Pakistan-US relations,” he added. 

He went on to say that the PTI will “continue political engagement and transactions with the US government and the embassy,” adding that Pakistan-US relation was important for both countries, 

Talking about the general elections, the ex-minister alleged that the incumbent government was preparing to kill Khan and wanted to create an atmosphere of religious hatred, adding that this was the “only government to file blasphemy cases against the opposition.”

Chaudhry, while shedding light on the devastation caused by the floods, said that destruction in Balochistan and Sindh was very high as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab’s infrastructure was much better than the other two provinces. 

Answering a question about the country’s economic situation and whether the country would default, Chaudhry said: “The PTI has decided to form an economic committee under the leadership of former finance minister Shaukat Tarin.”

Chaudhry further said that the PTI  wanted elections to be held on 123 seats and has decided to take the matter to the Supreme Court.