During their closed meeting, attended by Vice President Cheney, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, outgoing Secretary of State Colin L. Powell and his designated successor, national security adviser Condoleezza Rice, Bush talked with Musharraf about obtaining more information from Khan but did not ask for direct access, according to a senior administration official.
The official, who briefed reporters afterward on the condition that he not be identified, said the United States has already "obtained a treasure trove of information" from Pakistan about Khan's network but added that "we need to go back and make sure we've gotten every nook and cranny." Musharraf, he said, promised "that he was going to take this on when he got back to Islamabad and make sure that the information that is available is fully shared."
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, center, confers with journalists at Mayflower Hotel here after he met with President Bush at the White House. Bush said he was "very pleased" with Pakistan's efforts against al Qaeda.
(Shaun Heasley -- Reuters)
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During the Post interview, Musharraf ruled out granting any outsiders access to Khan because it would ignite anger among a public that has long revered Khan, the father of Pakistan's nuclear bomb. "It's a very sensitive issue inside Pakistan," he said. "The man has been a hero for the masses." In addition, Musharraf said he considers any such request a personal affront. "It shows a lack of trust."
Musharraf, an army general who seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999, signaled again that he may break his promise to surrender his position as head of the Pakistani military by the end of the year. Although he made the promise in an attempt to demonstrate his commitment to restoring full democracy to Pakistan, Musharraf said in the interview that he may retain his dual roles as civilian and military leader to guarantee "the sustainability of our policies."
But he grew testy at the suggestion that such a move would undermine his country's democratic development, saying he had taken many steps to empower women and minorities and guarantee a lively and free media. "The amount that I, in uniform, have done for democracy has never been done in the past in Pakistan," he said. "So let's not see democracy in the limited scope of [a] uniform. I don't believe that is the end-all of democracy." Under his rule, he added, "there is total democracy in Pakistan."
As he often has in the past, Musharraf characterized himself as the indispensable figure holding together a fractious country that needed to find unity among its political, bureaucratic and military establishments to confront its problems. "At this moment," he said, "I provide that unity."
Musharraf said Bush did not push him to relinquish his army post or take any new steps toward democracy. A senior administration official said Musharraf has committed to moving toward full democracy "at a pace that works for Pakistan" and praised his moves so far. "The institutions of democracy are strong; he's making them stronger," the official said in a briefing. "He's made it clear he intends to go the full way."
On other issues, Musharraf expressed hope about renewed peace efforts with neighboring India over the disputed region of Kashmir. "I think we've broken new ground," he said, noting a joint statement issued in New York recently. "I see this very optimistically. But as I said, these are mere words. We need to convert them into action."
Musharraf also pressed the White House to more aggressively press for resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, which he said is the key to defusing tensions in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere in the Islamic world. "This is the source of all problems," he said. Bush, he added, now appears "more focused and serious" about ending the Middle East conflict.
