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U.S. Support For Musharraf Sky-High After White House Visit
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| Bush gives Musharraf a ringing endorsement of his rule on his recent visit to Washington. |
ISLAMABAD,
Feb. 17 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) – In a remarkably sudden change of
outlook, the United States gave Pakistani President, Pervez Musharraf, a ringing
endorsement of his rule during his recent visit to Washington, even as
Pakistanis wondered whether U.S. interest in their country was long-term.
Musharraf,
whom Washington chastised after he took power in a 1999 military coup, was late
last week feted by congressional leaders and U.S. President George W. Bush, who
said he was proud to call the Pakistani leader his friend.
The
dramatic turnaround crystallized the new U.S. relationship with Musharraf, who
abruptly broke ranks with Afghanistan's hardline Taliban after the September 11
attacks on New York and Washington and became the frontline U.S. ally in its
"war on terror,” sharing intelligence and airspace to help the U.S.
achieve its military goals in the Afghanistan campaign.
In
the view of Pakistani analysts, Musharraf's visit signaled not only that U.S.
officials now accept the general's rule of Pakistan, but that they view him as
their chief hope for the country.
"The
symbolism here is that the Americans wanted to give a pat on the back to the
Pakistani president for services rendered," said Mushahid Hussain,
information minister under former premier Nawaz Sharif, whom Musharraf ousted
and imprisoned temporarily.
The
United States continued to insist during Musharraf's visit that he take steps to
restore democracy, emphasizing his promise of democratic elections later this
year. In response, Musharraf told a Washington audience Thursday, "I am
more democratic than any government ever existing in Pakistan."
Musharraf
has said he will “have a role to play,” even after elections for national
and provincial parliaments he has promised for October 2002, signalling in
Hussain's view that Washington has accepted "military-managed
democracy" in Pakistan.
Washington
has concluded that "the issues and agenda that Musharraf has unfolded...
probably need to be implemented through him as president and through the armed
forces," Hussain said.
Anwar
Iqbal, a foreign affairs analyst with United Press International in Washington,
agreed that military-backed power would remain accepted by the United States,
adding that the idea of democracy in Pakistan being a condition for good
relations between the two countries was “rubbish.”
“Most
of America’s best friends are dictators,” he told IslamOnline. Because other
Pakistani political parties have proven themselves to be “incompetent and
corrupt” and the army has the power to oust them from authority if needed, the
U.S. would “go and deal with the people who have power.”
After
breaking ranks with the Taliban under pressure from Washington, Musharraf
announced far-reaching reforms in Pakistan to eliminate “religious
extremism” – banning groups and arresting individuals – and build a more
“modern” society by improving education and eradicating corruption in the
infrastructure.
U.S.
House International Relations Committee chairman Henry Hyde told Musharraf:
"This committee will never forget your work."
Retired
Pakistani diplomat and general Kamal Natinuddin said U.S. officials have
"come to the conclusion that in the short- and long-term the military
government in Pakistan is going to remain the dominant power.
"Therefore
it is in their interests to support the military regime."
Musharraf
said Saturday after his return to Pakistan that he had been promised a
"reasonable amount" of financial assistance and debt relief.
Finance
Minister Shaukat Aziz said the Bush administration had pledged a
one-billion-dollar write-off of Pakistan's $2.8 billion debt to Washington,
although it has yet to be approved by Congress.
Musharraf's
visit came as tensions remain high with India. The two countries have deployed
some 800,000 troops to their border since a December 13 attack on the Indian
parliament, which New Delhi blamed on Pakistan-based Muslim activists;
Musharraf, during his visit here, placed the blame for escalating tensions on
India and called on its government to withdraw troops and resume dialogue.
But
while Bush called for India and Pakistan to engage in dialogue, he stopped short
of offering to broker between the two over hotly disputed Kashmir – a
possibility Musharraf encouraged during his visit. India adamantly rejects any
third-party mediation, while Pakistan says that the conflict will never be
resolved between the two parties alone.
Many
Pakistanis feel passionately that Muslim-majority Kashmir should not be
controlled by India; according to Natinuddin, "There is no other view [in
Pakistan] on this issue."
Musharraf's
trip effectively leveled the Washington playing field between him and Indian
Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, who visited the White House in December
after the United Nations General Assembly. Bush at the time met Musharraf only
on the sidelines of the summit in New York.
But
Hussain said the key U.S. interest in Pakistani-Indian relations was to prevent
war between the nuclear powers -- a goal many observers believe has already been
achieved by exhaustive telephone diplomacy by Secretary of State Colin Powell.
Despite
Musharraf's warm reception in Washington, many Pakistanis have bitter memories
of the United States, their Cold War ally, which worked with Islamabad to oust
the Soviets from Afghanistan in the 1980s but later cozied up to their
arch-enemy India.
Many
Pakistanis believe the new goodwill between the countries will not outlive the
Bush-Musharraf friendship.
"The
relationship will be long-term – which by U.S. standards means 2004,"
said Hussain.
"Basically
you're talking about Bush's term, which is quite long considering the United
States' shifting memories and short-term friendships," he said.
But
the continued fragility of Afghanistan may once again make Pakistan vital for
Washington, among other regional issues.
“I
believe that America will have to stay engaged in the region for some time,”
Iqbal said, citing Afghanistan’s instability as well as U.S. problems with
Iran and the threat of war with Iraq. He added that September 11 had produced
“more than an academic interest” in the Muslim world, and that interest was
“not ending sometime soon.”
“As
long as the war continues, America will like to keep as many Muslim friends as
possible, and Pakistan is in an important position,” he said.
With
additional reporting by Ayesha Ahmad, IOL Washington Correspondent.
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