Musharraf Seeking More U.S. Support

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, February 11, 2002

Musharraf Seeking More U.S. Support

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When he meets with President Bush this week, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf will be looking for economic aid and political support to strengthen his hand against Islamic extremists who have challenged him over the war in Afghanistan and Pakistan's crisis with India.

Musharraf, who meets Bush on Wednesday, needs to show both friends and foes at home that he has the firm support of the United States as he seeks to steer Pakistan away from the fundamentalist course his predecessors followed for nearly 20 years.

To succeed, analysts believe Musharraf will have to show his people that the new relationship with America will bring tangible improvements to their lives. Some Pakistanis want Washington to forgive Pakistan's $3 billion official debt, encourage U.S. investment in Pakistan and open the huge American market to Pakistani exports.

Despite Pakistan's longtime support for the Taliban in Afghanistan, Musharraf was quick to promise "unstinting" support to the United States immediately after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Musharraf let the United States use military bases here to support the Afghan campaign.

That enraged the country's vocal Islamic fundamentalist establishment, which organized nationwide protests and sent thousands of Pakistanis to fight alongside the Taliban.

Musharraf's steps were bold for the leader whose country had been moving ever closer toward Islamic radicalism. The Jan. 23 kidnapping of Wall Street Journal correspondent Daniel Pearl in Karachi is widely assumed to have been carried out by Islamic extremists seeking to embarrass the Musharraf government.

Bush's invitation for Musharraf to visit the United States now rather than after parliamentary elections in October is widely seen here as a gesture of personal thanks.

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