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Powell says Musharraf joined coalition after an ultimatum
US Secretary of State Colin Powell has disclosed that Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf was given an ultimatum of sorts, before he finally decided to support the US in its war against terrorism.
US Secretary of State Colin Powell has disclosed that Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf was given an ultimatum of sorts, before he finally decided to support the US in its war against terrorism.
In a candid interview to the New York Times, the former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff revealed that within 48 hours of September 11 terrorist strikes, he called up Musharraf and said, “General, you have got to make a choice.”
The choice, The New York Times said, was whether to cast Pakistan's lot with the United States in the imminent war, or remain an isolated and economically beleaguered state, crushed by foreign debt and sliding towards the same Islamic extremism that had brought the Taliban to power in neighbouring Afghanistan.
He (Musharraf) took 24 hours to consult his political leaders and his generals and he made that choice--not just a choice with respect to the Taliban but a strategic choice with respect to where Pakistan was going to be in the future, Powell said. In the wake of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, a number of nations are examining the strategic choices they face, he said adding that in this sense disaster has also brought an opportunity on a wide range of diplomatic fronts.
In this context, a deepening, long-term American engagement in South Asia and a robust military relationship with both India and Pakistan could also be seen, Powell said.
Bureau Report
The choice, The New York Times said, was whether to cast Pakistan's lot with the United States in the imminent war, or remain an isolated and economically beleaguered state, crushed by foreign debt and sliding towards the same Islamic extremism that had brought the Taliban to power in neighbouring Afghanistan.
He (Musharraf) took 24 hours to consult his political leaders and his generals and he made that choice--not just a choice with respect to the Taliban but a strategic choice with respect to where Pakistan was going to be in the future, Powell said. In the wake of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, a number of nations are examining the strategic choices they face, he said adding that in this sense disaster has also brought an opportunity on a wide range of diplomatic fronts.
In this context, a deepening, long-term American engagement in South Asia and a robust military relationship with both India and Pakistan could also be seen, Powell said.
Bureau Report