2008 Woodie Awards
Pakistan's new prime minister sworn in
By: THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Issue date: 3/26/08 Section: World
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - A key figure in Pakistan's new government told two top U.S. envoys yesterday there needs to be a change in President Pervez Musharraf's policy of using the power of the army against Islamic militants.
The call came as a new prime minister, Yousaf Raza Gilani, took office, closing the book on eight years of military rule.
President Bush phoned Gilani after his swearing-in and invited him to Washington at his convenience. Gilani's office quoted the new premier as saying Pakistan would "continue to fight terrorism."
But it was clear Pakistan's civilian rulers are rethinking counterterrorism strategy, amid concern that use of military force against al-Qaida and Taliban has provoked a bloody militant backlash.
Partners in the incoming coalition government have said they would negotiate with some militant groups - an approach that has drawn criticism from Washington, the source of about $10 billion in aid to Pakistan since it joined the war on terror in 2001.
Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte and Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia Richard Boucher held a flurry of meetings with Pakistani leaders yesterday.
Their first talks were with former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was ousted in Musharraf's 1999 coup and is now demanding the president's resignation.
Sharif said he told the American envoys there was "no longer a one-man show in Pakistan" and that the new parliament would decide how Pakistan should approach Islamic extremism.
The call came as a new prime minister, Yousaf Raza Gilani, took office, closing the book on eight years of military rule.
President Bush phoned Gilani after his swearing-in and invited him to Washington at his convenience. Gilani's office quoted the new premier as saying Pakistan would "continue to fight terrorism."
But it was clear Pakistan's civilian rulers are rethinking counterterrorism strategy, amid concern that use of military force against al-Qaida and Taliban has provoked a bloody militant backlash.
Partners in the incoming coalition government have said they would negotiate with some militant groups - an approach that has drawn criticism from Washington, the source of about $10 billion in aid to Pakistan since it joined the war on terror in 2001.
Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte and Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia Richard Boucher held a flurry of meetings with Pakistani leaders yesterday.
Their first talks were with former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was ousted in Musharraf's 1999 coup and is now demanding the president's resignation.
Sharif said he told the American envoys there was "no longer a one-man show in Pakistan" and that the new parliament would decide how Pakistan should approach Islamic extremism.
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