The leader of the ruling Pakistan People's Party said Pakistan is a signatory to the Vienna Convention and has its own law of 1972 on the privileges of diplomats.
All diplomats, technical and administrative staff of foreign missions in Pakistan have immunity under the Vienna Convention and the US official arrested for shooting and killing two men in Lahore is no exception, a spokesperson for the ruling Pakistan People's Party said today.
PPP leader Fauzia Wahab made the remarks while interacting with the media at the Karachi Press Club.
However, she said she was making the remarks in a personal capacity.
Pakistan is a signatory to the Vienna Convention and has its own law of 1972 on the privileges of diplomats and according to these regulations, all diplomats have "immunity from detention and from arrest," she said.
"The technical and administrative staff (of foreign missions) also have immunity," she added.
Wahab said Raymond Davis - the US official arrested in Lahore last month after he gunned down two men he claimed were trying to rob him - had an "official business visa".
Arguing over his status could put Pakistan's "overall good reputation with the rest of the world" at risk, she contended. Pakistan has to handle Davis' case with care as the US is the largest provider of aid to the country, she said.
The US is the biggest market for Pakistani products that generates revenues of $4 billion and a large number of Pakistanis live there, she said.
Asked about former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi's reported claim that he refused to grant a diplomatic visa to Davis, Wahab said Qureshi had violated the PPP's discipline by making such claims.
Washington's relations with Islamabad have hit a new low after Pakistani leaders rejected several US demands for Davis to be freed on the ground that he enjoys diplomatic immunity.
Reports have suggested that the PPP decided not to reallocate the foreign affairs portfolio to Qureshi during a recent shake-up of the cabinet as he was opposed to granting immunity to Davis.
Pakistani police have rejected Davis' claim of acting in self-defence and accused him of murder in an interim charge-sheet.
The government too is under pressure to put Davis on trial due to rising anti-American sentiments in the country.
The US has put off high-level talks with Afghanistan and Pakistan following the failure of attempts to free Davis.
American lawmakers have threatened to cut civil and military aid to Pakistan.
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