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CNN Live At Daybreak

Pakistan Won't Support U.S. Attack on Iraq

Aired September 02, 2002 - 06:02   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN ANCHOR: A leading ally in the terror war in Afghanistan says that he would not support a U.S. attack on Iraq.
And CNN's Christiane Amanpour is in Islamabad, where she spoke with President Pervez Musharraf and has the very latest on that -- Christiane.

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Catherine, indeed, we spoke to him earlier today about a wide range of subjects, this being almost the one-year anniversary of September 11 when, in fact, Pervez Musharraf did go contrary to Pakistan politics and agreed to join the United States in its fight against terrorism in Afghanistan.

But now, a year later, he says, that if he were asked to do the same in any military campaign against Iraq, he would not want to do that. He said that that would have a very negative impact, and that he would have to say no to the president of the United States.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PERVEZ MUSHARRAF, PRESIDENT OF PAKISTAN: I wouldn't like to get involved at all. I wouldn't like Pakistan to get involved in this at all. We have too much on our hands here, internally and regionally. We wouldn't like to get involved anywhere else

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AMANPOUR: President Musharraf also pointed out that right now, there seems to be very little, if any, support around the world for any kind of military intervention in Iraq, whether it be in Europe or in the Middle East or even, as he said, with the great powers, Russia and China. So he was very adamant about that.

Now, on the issue of Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda, you just reported that a London-based journalist says that he believes Osama bin Laden is alive. Well, President Musharraf, whose intelligence forces and security forces are trying to hunt them down, says that Osama bin Laden may, in fact, be dead. He wouldn't give us a reason why he thought that, but it does just go to show that one year afterwards, still no credible or consistent information on what may have happened to Osama bin Laden.

Now, in response to a call a couple of weeks ago by the United States to perhaps widen the hunt for al Qaeda and the top leadership beyond Afghanistan, perhaps even to put U.S. troops into countries such as Pakistan, President Musharraf said he would not go along with that either.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MUSHARRAF: U.S. troops? No, I don't think that would be wise at all. We are looking after all -- any foreign elements in Pakistan, and we have deployed a part of our army and the frontier corps for this purpose, and the United States knows what we are doing.

We are fully involved in this act. We don't need assistance. We will ask for assistance if we require it, and we -- I think our forces are capable of meeting whatever is required in Pakistan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AMANPOUR: Now, one year later, having made this historic U-turn in Pakistan's political and military policies, he says that on balance, it's been a good thing for Pakistan to align itself with the United States against terrorism. He says that, yes, there has been some rise of Islamic fundamentalism particularly here in Pakistan, some challenge to his rule.

But on the whole, he says, it was a good thing, it was a necessary thing to confront them. He is continuing to do that. He says he is trying to confront them head-on, and he says he will continue to do that -- Catherine.

CALLAWAY: All right, thank you -- CNN's Christiane Amanpour.

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