Musharraf looking for 'specific gestures'

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

NEW YORK, NOV. 10. The U.S President, Mr. George W. Bush, is expected to have wide- ranging discussions with the Pakistan President, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, when the two meet late this evening for formal talks which will be followed by dinner. Mr. Bush is expected to meet as many as nine world leaders in one day in New York.

The Bush-Musharraf meeting assumes extra significance as word is coming in that the Northern Alliance has captured the crucial town of Mazar-e-Sharif. But senior officials openly say that the Opposition forces should not rush into Kabul as the militarisation of the environment there could be problematic.

The tone and tenor of Mr. Bush's interaction with Gen. Musharraf would be totally different from what could have been expected had the terror attacks of September 11 not taken place. Mr. Bush will meet one of his key allies in the military campaign against Afghanistan even if Islamabad has been expressing considerable caution out of domestic political compulsions.

Gen. Musharraf has made it known, through an interview with The New York Times, that he is looking for specific gestures from the Bush administration for being in the anti-terrorism coalition, one of which being the early release of the F-16 jets sold to Pakistan but blocked in 1990 by Congressional action.

Administration officials are aware of some of Islamabad's major grievances, including the notion of being `dumped' when the American objectives have been fulfilled. Gen. Musharraf said Pakistan was looking for a `longstanding and sustainable' relationship with the U.S. and if this had not materialised ``as a Pakistani, I have to say the fault lies with the U.S.''.

Apart from the military operations in Afghanistan, the impression is that other areas such as economic assistance, regional peace and stability and movement towards democracy in Pakistan will also be taken up.

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