LONDON, 7 December 2004 — Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf said yesterday he had smashed the command structure of the Al-Qaeda terror network in his country.
Following talks with British Prime Minister Tony Blair in London, Musharraf said his government had arrested some 600 suspected Al-Qaeda members and “broken the back” of the terror network blamed for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.
The two leaders pledged continued cooperation in the war on terror, but stressed the need to tackle the root causes of extremism, such as poverty and social inequality.
“We have broken the back of Al-Qaeda in Pakistan,” Musharraf said at a joint news conference with Blair. “They are on the run, their command and control structure is broken.”
“There ought to be no reason for any doubts that Pakistan has won, is winning the battle against extremism and terrorism within its own area,” he said.
Pakistan is a key ally in the US-led war on terror, and Musharraf won praise in Washington last week from US President George. W. Bush for his cooperation in the hunt for Osama Bin Laden — despite the Pakistani leader’s acknowledgment that the trail had gone cold. Blair also praised Musharraf’s “courage and leadership,” and said they had agreed that military might alone would not defeat terrorism.
“Since Sept. 11 we have got to take every action that we can ... to fight terrorism militarily, but we would be foolish to ignore the causes upon which terrorists prey,” Blair said. Musharraf said the “strategic long-term” approach must include tackling the “socio-economic problems of illiteracy and poverty” and resolving political disputes. One such dispute is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which the two leaders discussed over lunch yesterday.
“Now is the moment to grasp the opportunities. There is the possibility of change opening up,” Blair said, but declined to comment on newspaper reports that Britain is preparing to host an international conference on the peace process following Palestinian elections in January. It was unclear if Blair had raised one issue of concern — Musharraf’s backtracking on a pledge to relinquish his military post by the year’s end. The general seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999, and Pakistan was suspended from the Commonwealth’s decision-making councils. It was readmitted in May, in recognition of democratic reforms and Musharraf’s pledge to stand down as head of the army by Dec. 31. But a few weeks ago, he indicated he might renege on that promise, and Pakistan’s Parliament passed a bill last month allowing him to remain head of state and army chief beyond the end of 2004.Blair’s spokesman said Pakistan was “moving in the right direction” toward democracy.
“Obviously we are very grateful to President Musharraf for the position he has taken in the fight against terrorism,” the spokesman said. “President Musharraf is well aware of our position on moving toward a full democracy.”
The two leaders also discussed the recent thaw in relations between Pakistan and India and the ongoing dispute over Kashmir. Musharraf said he hoped Britain and Pakistan would strengthen economic and trade ties, which would help alleviate poverty in his country.
