ISLAMABAD, 9 October — President Gen. Pervez Musharraf said yesterday he had canceled a US-Pakistani scheme to attack Osama Bin Laden when he seized power in 1999 because it could never have succeeded.
Musharraf, while not going into details, confirmed a Washington Post report that said the US Central Intelligence Agency had trained a team of 60 Pakistani commandos in 1999 to strike at Bin Laden inside Afghanistan.
Musharraf said it was the work of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the former director-general (DG) of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the military intelligence service headed then by Gen. Ziauddin Butt.
"This was a project with which the ex-prime minister and the ex-DG ISI were involved. On this I had no knowledge whatsoever," Musharraf, who was armed forces commander at the time, said when asked at a news conference about the Washington Post report.
"I think it was a project that could not ever have had any success. Therefore we certainly shelved that," Musharraf said.
Speaking at the news conference Musharraf said he believed the US-led action would be a short, sharp and targeted one.
Brushing aside concerns about streets protests against his support for the US-led operation, Musharraf said the Taleban had drawn the attack on themselves by refusing to hand over Osama Bin Laden.
"We tried our utmost, but unfortunately it was not possible to prevent the conclusion that happened" he said.
"One is hoping, and I have got definite assurances, that this operation will be short, ought to be targeted, and should also not have collateral damage," said Musharraf. The president said he did not believe the Taleban could mount a serious guerrilla campaign that would bog down US troops.
Musharraf repeatedly emphasized that Pakistan’s needs had now changed. In preparation for the attacks, he said Washington had sought access to Pakistani airspace, intelligence and logistical support. "We promised to accept these requirements and that is what we are providing now."
"The political dispensation must ensure unity and stability of Afghanistan and bring peace over there," Musharraf said. "This dispensation should be broad-based and multi-ethnic and taking in view the demographic composition of Afghanistan." Again emphasizing that Pakistan’s needs had changed, he said Islamabad had dropped its long-standing objections to the return of the former king of Afghanistan, Zahir Shah, who was ousted in a 1973 coup and had frequently been at odds with Pakistan.
"We need to plan a major rehabilitation effort in Afghanistan as fast and as soon on the heels of the action in Afghanistan," he said.
"We know that with these actions last night there are massive drops of food aid into Afghanistan," he said, referring to US food drops for 37,500 displaced Afghans which were timed to coincide with the military strikes.
"This is a very good sign that with the targeting of terrorist camps, the people of Afghanistan are being provided succor."
He estimated that more than a million refugees could be expected to try to enter Pakistan as Afghans flee the warzone, but only the sick or infirm would be allowed to cross the border. "We cannot open our borders," Musharraf said.
"We could expect now one million plus refugees coming into Pakistan and that is certainly not a burden that we can accept ... We can only accept the bare minimum." Musharraf said the future rulers in Afghanistan should be "friendly" to Pakistan and warned the Northern Alliance they could not dominate a post-Taleban government. "Certainly Pakistan would like to have a friendly Afghanistan on our west," Musharraf told reporters.
"Certainly the Northern Alliance must be kept in check so that we do not return to the period of anarchy," Musharraf said. The fall of the Taleban regime, representing the Pashtun ethnic majority, would create a volatile "political vacuum" which the opposition ethnic minority forces must not be allowed to fill, he said.
"In that vacuum maybe Zahir Shah has a role to play but we need to analyze and crystalise our view," he said. The president said he had sought and received assurances from the United States and Britain that a "friendly" Afghan government would be the outcome of military action against the Taleban.
