The United States congratulated on Wednesday April 13 the new Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif, elected Monday after the ejection, the day before, of his predecessor Imran Khan, who accused Washington of having pushed him towards the exit.
"The United States congratulates newly elected Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and we look forward to continuing our historic cooperation with Pakistan
," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.
“The United States believes that a strong, prosperous, and democratic Pakistan is essential to the interests of both our countries
,” he added.
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On Monday, Shehbaz Sharif, the 70-year-old leader of the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) and younger brother of a former prime minister, was elected prime minister in a session of the National Assembly boycotted by the opposition.
He succeeds at the head of this Islamic republic of 220 million inhabitants, endowed with nuclear weapons, the former glory of cricket Imran Khan, 69, who was overthrown on Sunday by a motion of censure, a first in the country's history.
Imran Khan has repeatedly called himself the victim of
'regime change'
orchestrated by the United States because of its criticism of American policy in Iraq or Afghanistan, with the complicity of the opposition.
Imran Khan, who intends to mobilize the street to obtain early elections, promised last week never to accept
"this imported government"
.