Islamabad October 22
In a new twist to claims and counter claims by Pakistani leaders on the 1999 Kargil conflict, President Pervez Musharraf has said the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif pulled out troops despite his suggestion that the campaign could be militarily sustained.

Releasing the Urdu version of his autobiography ‘In the Line of Fire’ here last night, General Musharraf said he briefed Mr Sharif and other political leaders at the Defence Coordination Committee, (DCC) meeting on July 2, 1999, about the military situation following escalation of conflict after Kargil intrusions and left the political decision to Mr Sharif.

“Personally I have given the military briefing for over an hour to DCC. I have given the military picture stating militarily there is no problem. Have confidence in us and there is no problem we will (with) stand (Indian offensive),” he told the DCC meeting attended by Mr Sharif.

After his briefing, there were queries whether the troops should be pulled out. “Two-three times I have been asked whether we should pull the troops or not. My answer was that it was a political decision. I have given the military point of view. The rest it is a political decision, which I left it to them,” General Musharraf said.

He said Mr Sharif put him in a tight corner by trying to make him propose the withdrawal but he stuck to his position that it had to be a political decision.

“I gave the military the reality. He (Sharif) wanted to use my shoulders for firing his gun,” he said at the release function. The book, titled ‘Subse Pehla Pakistan’ (Pakistan First), was translated by General Musharraf's brother-in-law Hidayat Khaweshgi.

General Musharraf said after his briefing he went to a holiday resort in Murree and later in the evening was asked to rush to meet Mr Sharif at the airport as he was on his way to Washington to meet the then US President Bill Clinton to arrange a ceasefire.

President Musharraf apparently was refuting allegations by Mr Sharif that the General panicked in the face of mounting losses especially after the fall of Tiger Hill and pleaded with him to arrange a ceasefire.

General Musharraf said the DCC meeting was also attended by Mr Sharif’s confidant Raja Zafarull Haq, and Shujaat Hussain, the present President of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Q, (PML-Q). Both Haq and Hussain were the Ministers in Sharif's Cabinet.

In his recent interview to ARY TV, General Musharraf said Mr Sharif opposed the withdrawal of troops from Kargil. He challenged Mr Haq to come out with details of the DCC saying Mr Sharif actually opposed the withdrawal of the troops. “I call Raja Zafarul Haq a liar if he does not speak the truth now because he attended the July 2 (1999) meeting”.

General Musharraf also ruled out constitution of an inquiry commission into the Kargil conflict as demanded by Mr Sharif. In an interview to Geo TV, he said the incident had become “a thing of the past” and there was no need to form an inquiry commission into it. — PTI

Islamabad, October 22
Former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said he is still in possession of a 1999 tape-recorded conversation between General Pervez Musharraf and the then Chief-of-General staff General Aziz Khan, which provides concrete evidence of the army having deliberately kept him in the dark about their military action in Kargil.

Daily Times quoted the ex-premier as saying that ‘‘the first I came to know about our military’s involvement in the war was from the May 26, 1999 tape-recorded conversation between General Musharraf and General Aziz, in which he asked Aziz if the Prime Minister was in the know about their plan.'' Reiterating his calls for the establishment of a Kargil Commission, Mr Sharif said he still had the tape and was ready to ‘‘present it to the commission’’ as proof of the army’s unilateral s Mush arraf, Aziz and Mehmood for betraying him over the Kargil conflict because he had deemed it best not to expose the crimes committed by the military Generals in question.

‘‘And I decided that I should not raise the curtain from the facts. I did that only to avoid the negative repercussion on the armed forces.

‘‘I acted with great patience and courage by assuming the responsibility to pull the army out of the crisis-like situation. I made a great sacrifice,’’ 
he said. — UNI

Islamabad, October 22
Close on the heels of a threat by former Prime Ministers Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto to boycott the 2007 elections in Pakistan if they were not allowed to contest, President Pervez Musharraf today said their return to the country would cause “political instability.”

If Mr Sharif and Ms Bhutto were permitted to come to Pakistan before the polls, it would lead to political instability, General Musharraf told Geo TV in an interview.

He said “The federation today was not stronger” compared to the situation seven years ago, when he assumed power. General Musharraf also said he would consider meeting Ms Bhutto and Mr Sharif if they made a request.

His comments came after Ms Bhutto and Mr Sharif met in London two days ago and said they would boycott the poll if they were not open to all political parties. They also said they would not have any political contacts with the military ruler.

“Musharraf will never be entertained for any contact for political purposes. There will be no negotiation or parleys,” Mr Sharif told a joint press conference with Ms Bhutto.

The two leaders said the general election should be held “under a neutral caretaker” and that free and fair poll would be possible only under such a set-up so that General Musharraf could not influence the polls.

In the interview, President Musharraf reiterated his stand that the army chief should not be the country’s head of state but said he held both posts for the country’s “better interests.”

Replying to a question about seeking proposals from Opposition parties for appointing an Election Commissioner, General Musharraf said proposals were sought but the parties had refrained from responding.— PTI 

Washington, October 22
President George W Bush said yesterday that he would make ''every necessary change'' in tactics to respond to spiralling violence in Iraq, and he acknowledged a drive to stabilise Baghdad had not gone as planned.

But he said he would not abandon his goal of building a self-sustaining Iraqi government.

''Attacks have grown significantly during the first weeks of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan,'' Bush said in his weekly radio address. ''The last few weeks have been rough for our troops in Iraq and for the Iraqi people.'' In an election year when discontent with the Iraq war may cost Bush's Republican allies control of the U S Congress, pressure is growing from lawmakers from both parties for a major shift in strategy in Iraq.

While insisting he is always open to adjustments in tactics, Bush has denounced Democrats calling for a course correction as supporting a ''doubt and defeat'' approach.

In his radio address, Bush quoted U S Maj Gen William Caldwell, who said earlier this week that a two-month-old campaign to crack down on violence in the Iraqi capital through mass troop reinforcement ''has not met our overall expectations.'' He said the military always reassesses the way it conducts the war. ''And we will continue to be flexible, and make every necessary change to prevail in this struggle,'' he said.

But Bush added, ''Our goal in Iraq is clear and unchanging: Our goal is victory. What is changing are the tactics we use to achieve that goal.'' More than 2,700 U S soldiers have died in Iraq since the U S-led invasion in 2003. At least 73 U S troops have been killed in October alone, a pace that -- if it continues -- will make it one of the deadliest months for the U S forces.

Longtime Bush family friend and former Secretary of State James Baker is leading a panel that is preparing recommendations for alternative strategies in Iraq.

But the Iraq Study Group's report will not be issued until after the November 7 elections.

Bush planned a videoconference yesterday involving Vice President Dick Cheney, Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, top White House officials and U S military officials in Iraq. — Reuters 

Seoul, October 22
Fresh reports emerged today that nuclear-armed North Korea may be ready for compromise as the top US diplomat headed home from Moscow after a mission to increase pressure on the reclusive communist state.

Talk of progress in the stand-off came as thousands of South Korean anti-war activists rallied in downtown Seoul, demanding US-North Korean direct talks to ease tensions over Pyongyang’s nuclear test earlier this month.

South Korea’s Yonhap news agency said the North’s leader Kim Jong-Il had promised not to stage a second nuclear test unless his nation was “harassed” by the United States.

The report quoted diplomatic sources in Seoul as saying Kim gave the assurance during a meeting in Pyongyang last week with a high-level Chinese delegation led by State Councillor Tang Jiaxuan.

“Kim said during a meeting with Tang that North Korea would not conduct an additional nuclear test unless the US harasses the North,” Yonhap quoted one source as saying.

“Kim also promised North Korea would return to the six-way (disarmament) talks in the near future as long as the US promises to lift financial sanctions after the talks reopen.” South Korean officials said they had no information on the report. Yonhap on Friday quoted a diplomatic source in Beijing as saying Kim had told his Chinese visitors there would be no additional test. — AFP