PAKISTAN - The Coming Challenges - Part 9 - The Role Of America.

With Washington having turned President Pervez Musharraf's regime into a vital partner in its war on global terrorism, Islamabad is preparing to present a decision for its ruler to retain the post of army chief beyond 2004 as being crucial to Pakistan's national security. This is because the army remains committed to the US-led war on terrorism, a rationale that would assuage criticisms in Washington and elsewhere.

Pakistan's new Prime Minister, Shaukat Aziz, on Sept. 7 pointedly declined to rule out the possibility that Gen. Musharraf will stay on as army chief in spite of a pledge to remove his uniform by the end of 2004. Speaking only a week after he became prime minister, Aziz, a former banker who was backed for the job by Gen Musharraf, said: "Whatever is decided will be according to the constitution and the best interests of Pakistan. The president will decide and I am very confident it will be in the best interest of Pakistan".

Aziz's remarks added to growing speculation that Gen Musharraf, whose presidential term ends in 2007, intended to stay on as military chief as well. On Sept. 5 Chaudhary Parvez Illahi, the chief minister of Punjab, Pakistan's largest province, publicly urged the general to retain his post army head for another five years.

Privately some ministers in Islamabad are also pressing Gen Musharraf to do so, in spite of the fact that he struck a deal with opposition parties last year to divest his uniform in exchange for their approval of changes to Pakistan's constitution.

West European diplomats have warned that any sign Gen. Musharraf would renege on his commitment would fuel further protests from opposition parties, which would exploit any opportunity to embarrass Pakistan's pro-military government. But Musharraf is counting on the support of the US, which will continue to depend heavily on his army's role in hunting down remnants of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda who have sought refuge in Pakistan (see Part 7 & 8).

Senior ministers in Islamabad say Gen Musharraf can quite legitimately stay on as army chief by reinterpreting the constitutional amendment that was enacted last December. They indicate that already Washington has given its tacit support for this. They argue that his commitment to the stability of Pakistan is more serious than that of the opposition parties, with the alliance to the US to help the country's economy as well as its position in ongoing peace negotiations between Islamabad and New Delhi.

Aziz worked as an international banker in the US for almost three decades before returning to Pakistan in 1999 to serve as finance minister after Gen Musharraf had seized power in a bloodless coup. On Sept. 7 he rebutted criticism that he lacked experience to run a government. He denied that the 59-member cabinet he announced recently was unwieldy. "Anytime you do something different, there's bound to be some contrary views", he said in an interview published earlier this month. "The truth is we have tried to create ministries so that they are manageable, so that for the first time there are clear goals for ministers, and there's accountability and targets". Aziz pledged to accelerate economic reforms and lay the basis for an upturn in domestic and foreign investments. He said: "The Pakistan of today and tomorrow is not the Pakistan of yesterday. We are attracting a lot of interest and there are in fact tremendous opportunities for new investors now".