Future leaders chosen by Pakistanis in next elections to have US backing, Blome tells CEC

The US ambassador also reaffirmed that America would back transparent polls

(Web Desk) - US Ambassador Donald Blome met Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikander Sultan Raja on Thursday to reaffirm the US support for "free and fair elections", saying it would work to strengthen the US-Pakistan relationship with "whomever the Pakistani people choose".

"The United States remains committed to working to broaden and deepen the US-Pakistan relationship with whomever the Pakistani people choose", a statement from the US embassy's spokesperson read.

During the meeting, the US ambassador reiterated that choosing Pakistan's future leaders is for the Pakistani people to decide, the statement added.

Blome also reaffirmed that America would back transparent elections "conducted in accordance with Pakistan’s laws and constitution".

In June this year, Michael Gahler, the head of the Election Observation Mission (EOM) of the EU Parliament, said that the EU may not send its election observers to Pakistan this year “because we are not sure about the general elections in Pakistan in 2023”.

Gahler told this to a group of Pakistani journalists in the EU Parliament who were visiting Belgium at the invitation of the European External Action Service.

Gahler is a member of the EU Parliament since 1999 and headed the EOM of Pakistan in 2008, 2013 and 2018.

He said that the EOM needed an invitation from the government of Pakistan to send their observation mission for the monitoring of the election at least three months before the election date. “But we have not received any invitation from Pakistan yet,” he added.