US supports ‘vibrant’ democracy in Pakistan

State Dept spokesperson says it is not for Washington to dictate Islamabad polls ‘specifics’

The United States said on Thursday it would continue to support a “vibrant” democracy in Pakistan but it was not supposed to dictate Islamabad on the “exact specifics” of holding the general elections, which is due in the country next month.

At his regular press briefing in Washington, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller declined to comment on the allegations of “excesses ahead of the polls” levelled by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) against the government.

“We will continue to support democratic expression and a vibrant democracy in Pakistan,” Miller told the journalists. “It’s not for the United States to dictate to Pakistan how it conducts – the exact specifics of how it conducts its election,” he added.

“But to make clear that we want to see those elections conducted in a free, fair, and peaceful manner that includes freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association, and ultimately a full, open, reliable, vibrant democratic process,” he said.

“Our interest, as you’ve heard me say before, is in the democratic process. We want to see free and fair elections which are conducted in accordance with Pakistan’s laws, and we don’t support one candidate or party over another in Pakistan or anywhere else in the world.”