The United States, while denying any role in the reported major power-sharing deal between Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf and former exiled prime minister Benazir Bhutto, has said it expects Musharraf to honor his commitments to give up his uniform and return the country to democratic rule.
In the wake of fast-paced developments in Pakistan, including the announcement by another exiled erstwhile prime minister Nawaz Sharif -- deposed by Musharraf in a bloodless coup in October 1999 -- that he will return to Pakistan on September 10, State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey said, "President Musharraf said he would address this issue of dual leadership of both his combined civilian and military role as army chief and as president in accordance with the constitution. And we would expect that he honors them."
But when pressed, whether at any level, Washington has sought clarification from the Pakistani authorities as to what Musharraf's intentions are, the spokesman said that while the US does talk to Pakistani government officials and members of the major political parties, "These are decisions that the Pakistanis themselves are going to make."
"Certainly, we're very interested in this process and are observing it very carefully," Casey acknowledged, and pointed out that the Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs Richard Boucher and the US Ambassador in Islamabad Anne Patterson speak regularly to Pakistani officials and are in contact with a variety of political players in the country. "So we're keeping ourselves apprised of these discussions through those kinds of contacts."
But, he said that "at this point, my best understanding is that these are decisions that are still being worked through and have yet to be made. And I'd simply let the Pakistani political process work through these issues. And I'm sure when there is something definitive we'll hear it first from them."
When challenged that the US was blowing hot and cold in over the last year saying Musharraf should eschew this dual role and honor his commitment to contending that it was a decision for the Pakistani people, Casey was on the defensive as to whether the Administration wanted him to give up his uniform or not.
He simply repeated that "he (Musharraf) said he's going to deal with this issue and made a commitment to deal with this issue, in accordance with the constitution of the country. That's a commitment he's made. We expect him to honor that commitment."
When asked point blank whether the US thinks he should keep the uniform of not, Casey said, "These are the kinds of issues that are in the political process. They're going to have to work it through themselves. And, I think we've seen there's a lot of activity and a lot of discussion going on this issue right now. We'll leave it to them to comment on it at this point."
"There's a Pakistani Supreme Court, it has opinions on this. There's a Pakistani parliament. There's a Pakistani political system. And it's not for the US to interpret Pakistan's constitution."
Asked if, since Musharraf is considered the key ally in the US-led global war on terror, the administration would expect him to be the anchor in any future political equation in Pakistan, Casey said, "Our expectation is that Pakistani democracy needs to develop in order for the country to achieve what President Musharraf's stated objectives are and what we share -- which is, to build a democratic country, to build one that is a moderate Islamic nation, that is an ally with the United States and others in the war on terror, and that works together with us to combat extremism."
"Who Pakistan's political leaders will be in the future is a decision that the Pakistanis are going to make, and that is one of the reasons why we do want to see the elections take place later on this year do so in a way that is free and fair," he said.
Earlier, Casey in responding to the Administration's take on Sharif's decision to return to Pakistan following a Supreme Court decision that ruled he was eligible to return and if this is in Washington's eyes a part of the sort of free and fair elections and democratic process the US hopes to see in Pakistan, said, "These are the kinds of decisions that Pakistanis are going to have to work through."
"The internal politics of Pakistan is going to be something, that they, themselves, are going to decide," he reiterated. "Our expectation is that any outcome in this situation or in some of the other political discussions that have been going on that we've talked about is that the outcome is going to be consistent with the rule of law in the Pakistani constitution."