| |
| |
![]() |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
WASHINGTON: The United States on Thursday reminded Pakistan leader General Pervez Musharraf of his pledge to shed his army uniform as he resisted pressure to end his dual role as president and military chief.
Both the White House and the State Department repeated on Thursday his previous "commitments" to hang up his uniform "in accordance with the constitution" but did not elaborate.
"Musharraf has made commitments in the past," said White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe, adding that Pakistanis would have to decide whether Musharraf – a key US ally in the "war on terror" – should keep his military position.
"These are issues for the Pakistanis to deal with," said Johndroe, adding that Washington, first and foremost, "seeks free and fair elections" in Pakistan.
Musharraf, who has kept his army position since seizing power in a bloodless coup in 1999, "has said he's going to deal with this issue and made a commitment to deal with this issue in accordance with the constitution," State Department spokesman Tom Casey said.
"That's a commitment he has made. We expect him to honour that commitment," Casey said, when asked whether Washington wanted Musharraf, a key US "war on terror" ally, to give up his military role.
He declined to elaborate on what he meant by Musharraf's commitment to deal with the uniform issue in accordance with the constitution.
But a senior US official told AFP "it actually means he (Musharraf) has given us assurance that he is going to resolve the issue of the dual leadership and he is going to do that in the near term.
"Does it mean before elections or after elections? I just can't get into that," said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
But he added, "I don't think we are trying to send any signal there.
"We just like to see the issue resolved so that the other challenges facing Pakistanis – the extremist challenge, the challenge of governing the tribal areas effectively can be addressed by moderate elements in Pakistan."
Musharraf has come under pressure over the government's inability to quell extremist violence in tribal districts bordering Afghanistan and attacks in other cities.
The president is resisting pressure from ex-premier Benazir Bhutto to declare whether he will step down as army chief under a possible power-sharing deal.
The 54-year-old Bhutto, Pakistan's first female leader, wants Musharraf to quit the military before he stands for re-election for another five-year term in September or October.
"On the uniform issue, the president will take a decision on the basis of law – there is no decision yet," Information Minister Muhammad Ali Durrani told reporters in Islamabad after meeting Musharraf on Thursday.
But a minister close to Musharraf said a day earlier that both sides had agreed on his military role. Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid told AFP that only a few points remained to be settled and that the uniform was "no longer an issue".
Also piling the pressure on Musharraf is the Pakistan Supreme Court's agreement on Wednesday to hear a legal challenge against his role as army chief. The lawsuit was filed by the head of Pakistan's coalition of Islamist parties.
- AFP/so
|
