Frontline Pakistan : The Struggle With Militant Islam - Arz-e-Pak

Volte-Face
on Afghanistan. There were only a few feeble voices in the cabinet
expressing concern over the possible public backlash. But largely it
was a tame affair.
General Musharraf did not find it hard to convince his handpicked
civilian cabinet, but it was not so smooth when it came to his top
commanders and members of his military junta. There was a complete
division over the issue. At least four top commanders, including General
Mahmood who had earlier, in Washington, signed on the dotted line,
showed reservations on the decision to provide unqualified support
to the United States in its war on Afghanistan. Lt.-General Mohammed
Aziz, Corps Commander Lahore, Lt.-General Jamshed Gulzar Kiani,
Corps Commander, Rawalpindi, and Lt.-General Muzaffar Usmani,
Deputy Chief of Army Staff, were among those who opposed pulling
out support for the Taliban regime. They had all played key roles in
the 1999 military coup. Musharraf, however, had the backing of other
corps commanders. It was a precarious situation for him.
He could certainly not backtrack. He tried to persuade Washington
to delay the attack on Afghanistan and give diplomacy a last chance.
He thought there was still a possibility of persuading Mullah Omar to
hand over bin Laden and avoid military action. He was worried about
an extremist backlash against the US attack on a Muslim country and
his government’s support for it. General Musharraf expressed his concern
about the domestic fall out to the American ambassador during
his long meeting with her on 15 September. ‘These decisions are not
very easy and we need understanding from the United States and also
support from them, so that I can take the nation along with me in our
fight against terrorism,’ General Musharraf recalled telling her. He was,
perhaps, more concerned about the reaction within the military.
Donning his military uniform, General Musharraf looked stressed
as he appeared on state television on the evening of 19 September
to explain why he had decided to side with the USA in the war on
terror. His tone was highly defensive as he told his countrymen how
hard he had tried to defend the Taliban against all odds. He justified
his decision saying it was done to save the country’s strategic assets,
safeguard the cause of Kashmir and prevent Pakistan from being
declared a terrorist state.
He chose the occasion to warn India to ‘lay off’ Pakistan at that
moment of crisis. The speech was aimed at defusing domestic
opposition and to assure the military that by sacrificing the Taliban, he
had protected Pakistan’s vital interests. 18
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