Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of Pakistan admitted on Tuesday that Islamabad had violated an agreement with India in 1999. This revelation came during a meeting of the PML-N general council, where he assumed the presidency of the ruling party, six years after being disqualified by the country's Supreme Court.

"On May 28, 1998, Pakistan conducted five nuclear tests. After that, Vajpayee Saheb came here and made an agreement with us. But we violated that agreement... it was our fault," said Sharif.

The agreement referred to by Sharif was the "Lahore Declaration," which he and then-Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee signed on February 21, 1999, aiming to promote peace and stability between India and Pakistan. However, shortly after the signing, Pakistani troops infiltrated the Kargil district in Jammu and Kashmir, triggering the Kargil War.

During the PML-N general council meeting, Sharif also mentioned conducting nuclear tests despite pressure from the United States and subtly criticized former Prime Minister Imran Khan.

"President Bill Clinton had offered Pakistan USD 5 billion to stop us from conducting nuclear tests, but I refused. If Imran Khan had been in my place, he would have accepted Clinton's offer," Sharif remarked, coinciding with Pakistan's observance of the 26th anniversary of its first nuclear tests.

Sharif alleged that former ISI chief Gen Zahirul Islam played a role in orchestrating the downfall of his government in 2017 to pave the way for Imran Khan's rise to power.

"I ask Imran not to accuse us of being supported by the military and to confirm whether Gen Islam had discussed bringing the PTI into power," Sharif stated, adding that Khan would bow down to the military establishment.

Sharif also accused former Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar of ousting him from the Prime Minister's office in 2017 based on a false case.

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