Existential threat posed by India forced Pakistan to go nuclear: Musharraf
March 27th, 2011 - 12:27 pm ICT by ANI
London, Mar 27(ANI): Former Pakistan military ruler Pervez Musharraf has cited India, which he said poses an “existential threat” to Pakistan, as the prime reason behind his country’s nuclear armament.
“Yes, we have nuclear weapons, and we are proud of it. Nuclear weapons are the pride of every man, woman and child walking in the streets of Pakistan. Why are we nuclear? Because of India,” Time magazine quoted Musharraf, as saying in an exclusive interview.
When asked which posed a bigger threat to Pakistan- extremism or India, the former military ruler conceded: “At the moment, it’s extremism and terrorism.”
“But you can’t compare. Let’s not think this is a permanent situation. The orientation of 90% of Indian troops is against Pakistan. We cannot ever ignore India, which poses an existential threat to Pakistan,” he added.
On being questioned whether Pakistan is the most dangerous country in the world, Musharraf acknowledged: “It is very dangerous, yes, I will have to admit. But the most dangerous is Afghanistan.”
Responding to another query, he blamed the “condition of the region” for preventing Pakistan from becoming the modern, progressive state he had envisioned when he took power in the country.
“In 1979 we launched a jihad in Afghanistan against the Soviets. Who was the spearhead of the fight? The religious militant groups. In effect we introduced religious militancy by design in Afghanistan, and then [the U.S.] left the place high and dry. The responsibility lies with the West. The U.S. encouraged it all, and we suffered. This is what we face. It comes from history,” he explained.
On being pointed out that one cannot lay all the blame on history, Musharraf said: “Yes, we have to take the lessons we have learned. We have to be careful not to create another blunder. The U.S. is declaring that it will quit in 2014. The Taliban are seeing that people are running away.”
When asked whether the US decision to pull out in 2014 from Afghanistan was not a good one, he said: “I know [what] public opinion is in the West and the U.S. But real leadership comes when you need to change public opinion, not go with it, because it’s not in your interest or the world’s interest. This is the reality in Afghanistan at this moment.” (ANI)
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