WASHINGTON - The White House on Monday described Pakistan's deportation of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif as an "internal matter," but urged the upcoming elections to be "free and fair," a spokesman said.
"This is an internal matter for the Pakistanis to deal with," said national security spokesman Gordon Johndroe.
Sharif was deported from Pakistan just hours after returning from exile hoping to ignite a popular campaign to oust military ruler President Pervez Musharraf, a strategic ally of the United States.
The combative Sharif, who arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday, had pledged his return to Pakistan would provide "a final push to the crumbling dictatorship" of Musharraf, who is facing the worst crisis since he took power amid a wave of political turmoil and Islamist violence.
Asked what impact the deportation might have on Pakistan's upcoming election, Johndroe said: "We will continue our discussions with various Pakistani parties" for there to be "free and fair elections."
After being ousted in 1999, Sharif was sentenced to life in prison for tax evasion and treason but was released in December 2000 on condition that he and his family live in exile in Saudi Arabia for 10 years.
The Supreme Court ruled last month that they could fly back. That bid set off the protests which spiralled into a full-blown political crisis for Musharraf, who has recently been negotiating a power-sharing deal with another former prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, to try to stay in office.
Bhutto has said she will announce a date for her own return on Friday.
lal/ksh/mac
09/10/2007 13:49 GMT