Imran Khan, Pakistan's new prime minister, promises to fight corruption, restore economy

Imran Khan.
(Image credit: Aamir Qureshi/AFP/Getty Images)

In his first televised speech since taking office, Pakistan's new prime minister, Imran Khan, said he plans on tackling the growing divide between the rich and poor.

"I want to see Pakistan a great country," Khan, a former cricketer, said on Sunday. He will focus on increasing social services for the poor, cutting government expenses, fighting corruption, and austerity measures, as Pakistan's foreign debt is more than $95 billion. Khan said Pakistan has never been doing worse economically, and "the interest that we have to pay on our debt has reached a level that we have to take on more debt just to repay our obligations."

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.