Musharraf dismayed at US condition on Pak aid

Islamabad, Aug 7: US ally President Pervez Musharraf said today that a US law tying aid to Pakistan to its progress in cracking down on al Qaeda and Taliban militants had cast a shadow on the two countries' relations.

The provision on Pakistani aid is part of a massive bill on implementing the recommendations of the September 11 commission, which US President George W Bush signed into law last week.

Musharraf told US Senator Richard Durbin, the Senate's second-ranking Democrat who was on a visit to Pakistan today, that the new law was an irritant in relations.

''Such legislation constituted irritant in the bilateral relationship, which must be based on trust and confidence in moving forward on issues of common interest,'' a Foreign Ministry statement quoted Musharraf as saying.

The Bush administration had previously opposed the conditionality, saying it would be counter-productive for fostering closer ties with Islamabad.

Pakistan's lawless tribal regions on the border with Pakistan are known as safe havens for al Qaeda fighters and their allies and Musharraf has been under growing US pressure in recent weeks to step up action against these militants.

The issue has become a hot topic in the US presidential election campaign with Democratic candidate Sen. Barack Obama last week saying that if elected, he would be willing to attack al Qaeda inside Pakistan with or without approval of its government.

In a telephonic conversation with Musharraf last week, Bush described the talk of such action as ''unsavoury'' -- though he previously had espoused this view -- and said he respected Pakistan's sovereignity.

US undersecretary of state Nicholas Burns last week also hailed Musharraf's role in the fight against militancy and described him as ''our indispensable partner''.

Analysts say unilateral US action in Pakistan could pose a major risk for Musharraf, who is experiencing the weakest period in his eight-year rule after the reinstatement of the country's top judge, whom he had tried to sack.

He also faces a growing militant backlash after an army assault on Islamabad's Red Mosque, a radical Islamist bastion, last month.

Pakistan has repeatedly ruled out allowing US troops to operate on its territory and said its forces are fully capable to deal with the militants.

There have been several clashes between Pakistani forces and militants in Waziristan, a hotbed of support for al Qaeda, in recent weeks.

The forces, backed by helicopter gunships, launched an attack on militant hideouts in North Waziristan today, in which three people were wounded.

Reuters>