Pakis­tan has dismissed the U.S. suggestion to probe discrepancies in the February 8 general elections, asserting that it will not succumb to external dictates.

Foreign Office spokes­person Mum­taz Zahra Baloch in her weekly press address on March 1 categorically said that “no country could give directions” to Pakistan, an independent and sovereign nation.

“We believe in our own sovereign right to make decisions about Pakistan’s internal affairs,” Dawn News quoted Ms. Bal­och as saying in reply to the comments made by her U.S. counterpart reg­arding allegations of misconduct in the controversy-marred general elections.

Earlier this week, U.S. State Department spoke­sperson Matt­hew Miller said any claims of interference or fraud “should be fully and transparently investigated per Pakis­tan’s laws and procedures”.

On another occasion, Mr. Miller said, “Concerning inv­estigations into reported irregularities, we want to see those investigations proceed … [and] wrapped up as soon as possible.” The comments were prompted by accusations, particularly by jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party-backed candidates, of tampering with and manipulation of election results.

The results were announced after an unprecedented delay by the Elec­tion Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

The ECP and the caretaker government have strongly refuted the accusations, urging political parties to pursue legal remedies for their complaints through courts and other appropriate channels.

Mr. Miller is not the only U.S. official to express concerns over the polls.

Citing “strong evidence” of election rigging in Pakistan, a group of influential lawmakers, including Muslim legislators, belonging to the ruling Democratic Party has urged U.S. President Joe Biden to withhold “recognition” of a new government in Islamabad until a transparent and credible investigation is conducted.

The February 8 general election, marred by allegations of widespread rigging, in Pakistan, resulted in a hung Parliament with independent candidates backed by the PTI party winning more than 90 seats at the 266-member National Assembly.

Ex-Premier Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) bagged 75 seats and former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto’s Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) got 54 seats.

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P) won 17 seats.

In a joint letter to President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the lawmakers expressed concerns about “pre-and post-poll rigging in Pakistan’s recent parliamentary elections”, urging the U.S. Congress to “withhold recognition of a new government in Pakistan until a thorough, transparent, and credible investigation of election interference has been conducted”.

Islamabad is a long-standing ally of Washington and it is in the interest of the U.S. to ensure that democracy thrives in Pakistan and that election results reflect the interests of the Pakistani people, not the interests of the Pakistani elite and military, the letter sent on Wednesday said.

Since the election resulted in a hung Parliament, the PML-N and the PPP have struck a post-poll deal with four other parties to form a coalition government, which may effectively end Mr. Khan’s chances of returning to power.

A party must win 133 out of 265 contested seats in the 266-member National Assembly to form the government.

PTI has rejected the attempts by the PML-N and the PPP to form a coalition government, warning that robbing its public endorsement by the “mandate thieves” will result in the worst political instability.

“Given the strong evidence of pre- and post-poll rigging, we urge you to wait until a thorough, transparent, and credible investigation has been conducted before recognising a new Pakistani government. Without taking this necessary step, you risk enabling anti-democratic behaviour by Pakistani authorities and could undermine the democratic will of the Pakistani people,” the U.S. lawmakers said.

The letter urged Pakistani authorities to release anyone who has been detained for engaging in political speech or activity and tasked State Department officials in Pakistan with gathering information about such cases and advocating for their release.

It urged the Biden administration to “make clear” to Pakistani authorities that U.S. law provides for accountability for acts that violate human rights, undermine democracy, or further corruption, “including the potential for military and other cooperation to be halted”.

Around 35 Congress members, led by Democratic Party’s Gregorio Casar, have written a letter to President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging not to acknowledge the new government in Islamabad until the cash-strapped country formally investigated the rigging allegations.

In response to a question about the letter, Ms. Baloch said, “This is a communication between public officials in the U.S. and is not addressed to the government of Pakistan. We therefore have no comments to offer on such letters.” Ms. Baloch said Pakistan is a “dynamic democracy” and possesses the necessary domestic frameworks to address issues related to elections or democratic processes.

The spokesperson also refrained from commenting on PTI founder Imran Khan’s letter to the International Monetary Fund which linked any future financial support with the election audit.

“As you know the [interim] Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has made a statement on this matter. The Ministry of Finance takes the lead on IMF-related issues, so they will be in a better position to comment on this subject,” she said.

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Pakistan has rejected a report claiming that it sold arms and ammunition to Ukraine in order to secure a crucial bailout package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch on September 18 rejected as “baseless and fabricated” the Intercept report saying that cash-strapped Pakistan provided arms to the U.S. to get its support to clinch a $3 billion deal with the IMF towards the end of June to avoid default.

The Intercept, an investigative website, on Sunday reported that “secret Pakistani arms sales to the U.S. helped facilitate a controversial bailout from the IMF earlier this year.

The report said that the arms sales were “made for the purpose of supplying the Ukrainian military — marking Pakistani involvement in a conflict it had faced U.S. pressure to take sides on”.

Pakistan has struggled to maintain a balance in ties with the Kremlin and Washington since the Russia-Ukraine crisis began earlier last year.

“The IMF Standby Arrangement for Pakistan was successfully negotiated between Pakistan and the IMF to implement difficult but essential economic reforms. Giving any other colour to these negotiations is disingenuous,” Dawn News quoted Ms. Baloch as saying.

Ms. Baloch said Pakistan maintained a policy of “strict neutrality” in the dispute between the two countries and did not provide them any arms or ammunition in that context. “Pakistan’s defence exports are always accompanied by strict end-user requirements,” she said.

During a visit to Pakistan in July, Ukra­inian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba had rejected similar reports that the cash-strapped country was supplying arms to Ukraine to support its military during the ongoing conflict with Russia, according to Dawn. He had clarified that the two nations had no deal for the supply of arms and ammunition.

Former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari had also expressed similar views, maintaining that Pakistan had not signed any agreement with Ukraine for military supplies since the war began.

In July, the IMF transferred $1.2 billion to cash-strapped Pakistan, part of the $3 billion bailout programme for nine months to support the government’s efforts to stabilise the country’s ailing economy.