9/11 put Pak existence in jeopardy: Musharraf

[Naveed Yaseen]

LAHORE: The country’s territorial integrity could have been jeopardised had Pakistan not decided to side with the US and allied forces in the post-9/11 scenario, a private TV channel quoted former president Pervez Musharraf as saying on Friday.

Talking to the channel, Musharraf said the country’s nuclear programme was in safe hands, adding that no Pakistani could think of any compromise on the country’s nuclear weapons. He said his decision to side with the international community in the war on terror was correct and timely.

To a question, Musharraf said Hindu oppression of Muslims in India had lit the fire of militancy and extremism among the Pakistani youth who in turn had created militant organisations such as the Jaish-e-Muhammad.

He said during his tenure as president, the country had moved forward on all major issues such as Kashmir, Sir Creek and Siachen through ‘back-channel diplomacy’. To another question, Musharraf said Kabul was a possible safe heaven for militants operating in Pakistan. He said the Afghan soil had been used to destabilise Pakistan by the terrorists, adding that the Indian consulates had been built in Afghanistan for the same purpose.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...2009_pg7_2