RAWALPINDI: Former Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood has stated in his statement before the special court that is hearing the cypher cases that former Premier Imran Khan was advised that there was no precedence for the declassification of the secret document because there was no precedent for the declassification of the document.
He stated in his written declaration that a cabinet meeting was held on April 8, 2022, consisting of himself as the foreign secretary, the cabinet secretary, and the law secretary. He also mentioned that the law secretary was present at the meeting. During the course of the meeting, Mahmood stressed that the cypher security principles allow for the cypher telegram to be shared with just those individuals who are permitted to do so. Additionally, he mentioned that following the discussion, a decision was reached to brief the parliament in a session that was kept private.
In addition, the former secretary of foreign affairs indicated that the additional secretary of the United States had sent a note expressing worries on Imran’s credentials that were expressed by the American authorities.
The statement that Mahmood made during his testimony in the cypher case was recorded, and it included a mention of his nomination as the foreign secretary in March of 2022. He made contact with the Pakistani ambassador in Washington on March 8, 2022, and the ambassador informed him about a meeting that was scheduled to take place with the United States Secretary of State for South and Central Asia. Additionally present at that meeting was the deputy head of mission as well as the defence attache.
In his description, he mentioned that the ambassador had briefed him about the sensitivity of the situation and informed him that a cypher would be sent to the minister of foreign affairs. As soon as he was in possession of a copy of the cypher, he designated it as confidential and designated it for the sole use of the director of foreign affairs. In order to ensure that only the Secretary of State was in possession of the copies, they were provided with the explicit command that they should not be circulated. The cypher copy was authorised to be distributed, and instructions were given to enclose it in a top-secret envelope before it was sent out.
Mahmood added that during a meeting that took place on March 27, 2022, the former prime minister Imran handed a letter. This related to the subsequent events that took place. An internal note was received on March 28 from the Secretary of State of the United States of America, expressing worry over the public remark that Imran had made. Mahmood swiftly submitted this note to the foreign ministry, instructing them to keep a connection with the United States in order to prevent public debates on significant relations and the findings of the commission.
Furthermore, Mahmood was asked to Bani Gala for an unplanned meeting on March 29, 2022. This encounter was not scheduled. Participants discussed the interaction that took place between the assistant secretary of state and the Pakistani ambassador in Washington while the cypher telegraph was being read aloud.
The categorisation of cypher was stressed since it has the potential to influence the diplomatic mission’s activity with the United States of America and other nations. Mahmood brought the copy of the cypher telegram with him and referred it to the Director of the Federal Security Office (FSO) when the conference at Bani Gala came to an end without producing any tangible outcomes.
In his statement in court, he noted that it was important to note that he was not given instructions to make minutes for this meeting.
Because of the engagement of the counsel, Justice Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain of the special court decided to postpone the hearing till Friday. This decision was made during the hearing that took place today.
