|
 |
CNN LIVE AT DAYBREAK
Musharraf Will Not Allow Additional U.S. Troops
Aired September 2, 2002 - 05:07 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN ANCHOR: CNN's Christiane Amanpour had a chance to sit down with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf for a talk on a wide range of topics. She's now in Islamabad joining us to tell us what she learned -- hello, Christiane.
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Catherine, well, we asked him specifically about whether he would throw his support behind any military intervention in Iraq. As you know, the United States is trying to make a case, presumably will try to make a public case and may even try to achieve a coalition like it did against Afghanistan.
Well, President Musharraf, who allied himself firmly with the United States over the war in Afghanistan, says that he would not get involved in any military intervention in Iraq. He said that, first of all, he felt that Pakistan had too much on its hands right now with the hunt for al Qaeda and that it would have a negative impact on the Middle East.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRES. PERVEZ MUSHARRAF, PAKISTAN: It's not a question of removing Saddam Hussein. It's a question of attacking a country, attacking another Muslim country. At the moment, all the political disputes, all military actions, all the casualties and suffering are by the Muslims around the world. Because all the political active, political disputes involve Muslims, unfortunately. And more unfortunately, Muslims happen to be at the receiving end everywhere.
Therefore, another act of, action against a country -- I'm not talking of Saddam Hussein as an individual -- against a Muslim country, will certainly have its impact.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AMANPOUR: President Musharraf also pointing out that any intervention in Iraq so far has very little, if any support, whether it be in Europe or in the Middle East or, indeed, he said, amongst the great powers such as China and Russia.
On another issue, the hunt for al Qaeda, which Pakistan is involved in, you know, over the last week the United States has suggested that it might need to widen the hunt for al Qaeda beyond Afghanistan, suggesting even that there may be a need to come into Pakistan.
President Musharraf said he would not allow any U.S. troops, any more U.S. troops to come in here, saying that his own army was fully deployed trying to help in the hunt for al Qaeda and any more U.S. troops inserted in Pakistan would be, he said, unwise.
He said that he believed the al Qaeda leadership was in disarray and although Osama bin Laden had not been captured, as President Bush had promised over a year ago, he said that maybe even Osama bin Laden is dead. He did not give a reason why he believed that might be the case.
He also addressed the issue of the rise of Islamic militants in Pakistan itself, saying that September 11 and his decision to assist the United States had caused some disturbance in his country, but on balance he believed it was a good opportunity for Pakistan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MUSHARRAF: Yes, it has raised some opposition. It has generated a kind of dynamics within the country. It has given rise to a little bit more of extremism. But I personally feel it's good that we have faced it and it is good in the long run. I'm very sure of its positive effects in the long run because we are matching them head on. We are taking them on head on. We are improving our law enforcement agencies. We are improving our capabilities to match this extremist threat. And sooner better than later, because I think the whole public, the Pakistani public, were fed up of these extremist acts before we cracked down even.
So therefore I think it will have positive effects in the long run.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AMANPOUR: Now, President Musharraf himself in the next week will head to the United States. He will take part in memorial services in New York for the victims of September 11 and he says he remains firmly committed to his new pro-Western, pro-U.S. stance and to continuing the hunt for the al Qaeda militants who may be in Pakistan -- Catherine.
CALLAWAY: Christiane, did President Musharraf address at all the concern in his country about amendments that he made to the constitution in Pakistan?
AMANPOUR: Yes, he did. We asked him about that and he said that what he had done was try to ensure that Pakistan has what he called a sustainable democracy, one that is not interrupted every year or every other year. He said that what he had tried to do was to make sure that no one individual, whether it be the president or the prime minister or the army chief of staff, concentrates power or money for his own personal or political gain.
He said that his attempt to create a national security council that includes civilian and democratically elected officials as well as uniformed leaders of the military services, he said that was in order to have debates when any trouble arose and to prevent Pakistanis doing what they often do when there's trouble, and that is when there's trouble in the democratic process, often they rush to the military to try to solve this. That means the military steps in and sometimes takes over power, as, indeed, he did in 1999.
He said his amendments are an attempt to stop Pakistan's historic troubles with democracy and try to put it on a road to a sustainable democracy, one that has some chance of being a more, a less corrupt democracy here in Pakistan.
CALLAWAY: All right, thank you.
That's CNN's Christiane Amanpour in Islamabad.
Thanks, Christiane.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
|
|
|
|
|
