Musharraf's Last Effort

"Gen. Musharraf has called Washington and London's bluff, knowing that have no option but to back him," wrote The Guardian from the British capital on Monday. "In launching what is, in effect, his second military coup in eight years, the general has exposed the impotence of the US and Britain to control a key ally with nuclear weapons." The general also dealt a blow to Washington's plan to stage the comeback of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, whose denunciation of Musharraf's "mini-martial law" was criticized for being "ritualistic," added the paper.

Writing from Rome on Monday, La Repubblica was also critical of the US' foreign policy, particularly its financial contributions. "[Condoleezza] Rice announced yesterday (Nov. 4) that the US would review the aid it has been sending to Pakistan, but it doesn't look as if the US wants to end its military support in Islamabad," commented the paper. "Since 2001, Musharraf has received nearly $11 billion from Washington and $150 million continue to flow in each month. Of this, only 10 percent goes to economic and social projects. The rest goes to the soldiers."

"In Islamabad, the house of cards of democracy and stability, which Washington had built up around Pervez Musharraf, has collapsed," commented Germany's Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung on Sunday. "Despite the pile of rubble, Washington is continuing to act as if Pakistan were a bastion against Islamo-fascism. Those who are disappointed about the state of emergency haven't thought of cutting off financial support to Musharraf," added the paper.

"Calling a state of emergency was [Musharraf's] last effort to try to prevent his public demise," wrote Switzerland's Basler Zeitung on Monday. Though the move won't save him, suspending parliamentary elections may win him time for further negotiations, commented the paper: "But his unrestricted rule is coming to an end. It remains to be seen whether this is a chance for Pakistan or if it will throw the country into even more chaos."

In a commentary on Sunday, Berlin's die tageszeitung also predicted that an end to Musharraf's rule was in sight. "Like many dictators, the general is becoming the victim of his own hubris by equating his personal power with state interests," wrote the paper. "As if he didn't have his hands full with the threatened front of Islamic fundamentalism, he's now making even more enemies. It's just a matter of time before his most powerful prop, the army, realizes that their interests and those of its commander-in-chief aren't necessarily the same."