In Parliament, 184 votes were cast in favor of the motion of no-confidence by the MPs representing the parties opposed to the Imran Khan-led government and 110 votes were cast against it. 162 votes were enough to enforce the no-confidence motion.
Imran Khan has been claiming that a conspiracy to oust him was hatched by the White House because of his independent foreign policy. According to him, he was the victim of an unwritten agreement between the opposition and the US government. In the eyes of the US government and some of its regional allies, Imran Khan became a disobedient government contrary to their expectations! Washington was outraged when Imran turned down offers to allow US forces to use some of Pakistan's military bases, and visited Russia after the start of the Ukraine war.
No other government has dared to adopt the kind of independent policy that Imran has adopted, especially closer to China and Russia. Since taking office in 2016, Imran has pursued a policy of caution in cooperating with Washington on the Afghan war and has put Pakistan's national interest above US will. His predecessors, Pakistani officials, have been heavily used by the US government in the Afghan war.
Imran did not allow Pakistan to be used against other countries. In particular, the decision not to allow US military bases on Pakistani soil provoked the highest level of retaliation against Imran within the US government. In this situation, Washington came up with a plan to oust Imran Khan from power with the opposition parties. In the end, the joint plan of Washington and the anti-Imran camp succeeded. But as a result, Pakistan's social and political arena may be heated for some time. Imran Khan's supporters can destabilize the situation by staging mass protests at his call.
Pakistan's new government is expected to strengthen ties with Washington and Riyadh and reduce ties with Russia, and may even change its policy towards the Taliban and its neighbors.
The revelation of foreign interference in Imran's removal could provoke widespread sympathy among the people of that country. As a result, Imran Khan and his party may return to power in the next national elections with better results than before.
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