The Hindu : No one can coerce Pak.: Musharraf

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jul 27, 2002

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International

No one can coerce Pak.: Musharraf

By B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD July 26 . Ahead of a series of high-level visits to the region by senior functionaries from the U.S. and the West, as part of the ongoing effort to defuse Indo-Pakistan tensions, the Pakistan President, Pervez Musharraf, declared here today that Pakistan "would not be blackmailed or coerced by anyone.''

Addressing senior military leaders at the conclusion of the ten-day war games, billed as the largest since 1971, Gen. Musharraf said Pakistan stood for peace and added that "our desire for peace should not be misperceived as a sign of weakness.''

Though Gen. Musharraf made the observations at the concluding ceremony of the war games, they clearly reflect the hardened posture of Islamabad in recent days on the peace efforts by the Anglo-American mediators. Last week Gen. Musharraf sent out a strong message on how Islamabad viewed the shuttle diplomacy by refusing to meet the British Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw.

The General told the military leaders that Pakistan was faced with an adversary that had made ``no secret of its desire to harm'' Pakistan in every way possible. He said it (India) was only deterred by the capability of Pakistan armed forces.

Gen. Musharraf reiterated the potential of Pakistan's armed forces to not only defend every inch of the country but also strike a ``telling blow'' to anyone who dared to violate its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

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No one can coerce Pak.: Musharraf