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US calls for unrestricted internet access in Pakistan

State Department terms new government formation ‘internal matter’ of Pakistan

By News Desk

February 21, 2024 11:15 AM


US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller

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The United States has described the formation of a new government as Pakistan’s internal matter, though it reiterated that any administration in Islamabad should transparently investigate the allegations of election irregularities and emphasized the need for unrestricted internet access amid social media blockages in the country, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

While responding to a question about the possibility of the US asking Pakistani authorities to respect PTI’s mandate during a news briefing in Washington on Tuesday, State Department Spokesman Matthew Miller said “I don’t want to get into an internal Pakistani matter, which I very much believe that the formation of a new government is.”

He further said “So, that’s a matter that I will leave to Pakistan. But as I said, when it comes to the claims of interference or allegations of irregularities, we want to see those fully investigated.”

Miller also expressed concern over the intermittent blockages of platform X, formerly known as Twitter, in Pakistan during recent days.  “I don’t have any updates on whether it’s something that’s been raised, but we always want to see full internet freedom around the world, and that includes the availability of platforms that people use to communicate with each other,” he said.

“I’ll just say as a general matter that we want that to – we want Internet platforms to … be available to people in Pakistan and around the world,” he continued. “And I don’t have anything further than that.”

Earlier, US Congressman Greg Casar has urged the US State Department to demand Pakistani authorities to restore access to social media platform X, which remains blocked in the country for the fourth day.

In a post on X, Casar said, “Pakistanis use Twitter to expose post-election interference. But now, Pakistani authorities are blocking Twitter access for the third straight day.”

“State Dept should demand authorities restore access to Twitter. Our allies should meet basic standards of free speech and democracy,” he added.


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