Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said he may not accept a vote of no confidence from Parliament a day before the lawmakers are set to decide if Khan should stay in power.
The comment was made during a meeting with select reporters on Saturday, with Khan elaborating he believes the vote is a plot by the U.S., Reuters reported.
“How can I accept the result when the entire process is discredited?” Khan said. “Democracy functions on moral authority. What moral authority is left after this connivance?”
“The move to oust me is blatant interference in domestic politics by the United States,” he added.
Khan said this is an attempt at “regime change” by the U.S., as the Biden administration has been under fire after critics say he called for regime change in Russia.
Khan has been vocal about his opposition to Western countries, hitting back at their attempts to have Pakistan stand against Russia in the war on Ukraine.
“What do you think of us? Are we your slaves … that whatever you say, we will do?” Khan said.
The prime minister has lost a majority in Parliament after allies joined the opposition movement that is friendlier to the U.S., according to Reuters.
General Qamar Javed Bajwa, head of the army, recently said, “We share a long history of excellent and strategic relationship with the United States, which remains our largest export market,” Reuters noted.