Subtlety isn't a feature of the Bush Administration.
The other day, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf announced that back in 2001 The U.S. threatened to bomb Pakistan if there was no cooperation with US anti-terrorism efforts. The comment was attributed to then-Deputy US Secretary of State Richard Armitage, the same man who supposedly let slip the covert CIA identity of Valerie Plame Wilson.
“In this situation,” Musharraf said, “I have to think and act to protect my nation’s interests, and so I did.”
Musharraf claims also that the US insisted on Pakistan allowing US troops to use its military bases and frontier outposts during the war in Afghanistan while forbidding the people to express support to militants who attack US military facilities during the war in Afghanistan.
This Musharraf refused, saying, “We cannot deprive our people of their freedom of speech.”
Would that we got such a clear declaration of free speech rights from our own government!
But I digress.
For his part, George W. Bush says he knew nothing of this threat, which is probable considering that Armitage is alleged to have made it to Pakistan's head of intelligence. Bush may not have known a thing about this, which isn't a good sign that he is in charge of the government he heads.
The fact that this story has come out now has some interesting implications.
Recently, Fidel Castro hosted a conference of non-aligned nations, which issued a statement vowing to oppose the United States as "a country [which] posed "a grave threat to world peace and security."
In addition, Asian investment funds are beginning to rise, which could lead to foreign investors to bypass Wall Street for capital - a move which would immediately weaken confidence in the dollar, and the US economy by extension.
Article comments
1 - ZQ
I believe President Pervez Mussharraf is telling the truth... How can anyone believe Armitage who is the same person that revealed the identity of Valerie Palme Wilson. When are we going to get rid of the Mafia Mentality that is allianating us from rest of the world. Pakistan has always been a strong us ally and us has always used it and looked the other way when we did not need Pakistan. We should not give any excuse to the extreemists who are looking esploit.
2 - PeacEternaLove
Another example of Bush not knowing what his administration is doing? or just another lie, from the leader of a world power?
It is certainly time for the people of this world to demand from their goverments, at the very minimum, honesty. If that is too much to ask, those in power need to be removed. Is that too much to ask?
3 - Bliffle
Bush has made such a joke out of US bullying that every pipsqueak ruler will soon be taunting us. We have to get rid of him. Bush, that is.
4 - Nancy
It would certainly appear that world leaders - especially Bush - think it's too much to ask. As for who's telling the truth, I agree with ZQ: Armitage has no credibility, any more than Bush does. On the other hand, threatening to bomb another nation back to the stone age sounds very much like what the official BushCo foreign policy line always has been.
5 - JustOneMan
You have forgotten we are in a post 911 world... anyone harboring or supporting terrorist is by default a terrorist... there for they deserve to bombed back into the stone ages...
6 - Huvis
I think for once that Armitage did the right thing. Pakisthan were clear supporters of the Taliban, Musharaf is a double-faced snake, and nothing would have persuaded him (or the nefarious ISI) to fall in line better than some good old fashioned arm twisting.
7 - MM
Pakistan, an a friend of the US? WHAT A JOKE!!! The only people they are friends with are terrorists from all over the world as it is the biggest training ground for all the world's jihad. Look at the nefarious activities Pakistan's ISI is upto everytime. And Musharraf is like a snake that bites when you are most vulnerable. The pressure from State Dept. should continue else the terrorist camps will continue to mulitply manifold.
8 - Nancy
In this case, while I do believe Armitage did make the threat as Musharrif reported, I also don't see Pakistan as any kind of ally of anybody civilized, and certainly not the non-muslim west. You're right: Musharrif is a 2-faced snake, and I wouldn't trust any of them as far as I could throw them. I don't understand how Bush considers them good friends when they're still the major training ground for terrorists as well as being a haven for the Taliban & bin Laden. Personally, I think we SHOULD bomb Pakistan - and Afghanistan while we're at it - back to the paleolithic or beyond.
9 - Huvis
Bombing Pakistan is such a lovely idea. Ooh, makes me tingle. If only they could congregate all the mad mullahs in one place, say Baluchistan (who's heard of Baluchistan anyway?), away from women and children. Piff! Problem solved. But drat, Al Quaida trains the faithful on hiding behind 10 year olds, builds cellars under mosques and crowded bazaars, and complicates the simple matter of nuking a cesspit.
Occasionally I get sentimental for the Cold War and the thugs from the Kremlin. King Kong vs Gozilla has run into a sequel here: Kong and the million little vipers (swathed green; oozing religion and venom). But ah the Krem's moved on too... onto Gazprom's executive board.
10 - Eublet
Nice marketing strategy. Musharraf makes a very outrageous claim right before his his book is released. Surely he's telling the truth, and not trying to gather attention right before it's release? Of course we should believe him. After all, he's just an honest person that rules a nation that harbors terrorists.
11 - Nancy
No need to believe him, but he DID manage to plug his book to all the world, a marketing ploy that surely has every writer in the world green with envy. Can't fault him for that. As for the veracity of his claims & book, better persons than he not so long ago have sold millions of copies of what has turned out to be sheer lies.
12 - Eublet
Fault him for pluggin a book? Of course not. But if the plug is an outright light, or an exageration of the truth, then it needs to be faulted. I also happen to think that, even if it is true, it's not something he should share. Countries have been threatening one another for eons in order to get important things done. Invading Afghanistan was one of those things. So, if in fact he did resist, and then we threatened to bomb the crap out of him, I'm glad for it.