Pervez Musharraf: military dictator who became a valued US ally

Divisive army chief worked with President Bush to take on the Taliban after 9/11

General Pervez Musharraf
Under his leadership, Pakistan evolved from ‘rogue state’ to valued ally in the ‘war on terror’
(Image credit: AFP/Getty Images)

Of all Pakistan’s leaders since independence, none has “so divided opinion” as General Pervez Musharraf, who seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999, said The Guardian. To some, he was just another “ruthless military dictator” who allowed radical religious parties to flourish, “to clip the ambitions” of secular ones opposed to his military rule; to others, he was a “man of vision”, a whisky-drinking liberal seeking to turn nuclear-armed Pakistan into a beacon of what he called “enlightened moderation”.

It was abroad, however, that he enjoyed most acclaim. Under his leadership, the country evolved from “rogue state” to valued ally in the “war on terror” that followed the 9/11 attacks; and during Musharraf’s decade in office, the US provided Pakistan with $1bn a year in mostly military aid. But at home, where anti-US sentiment ran deep, and ties to Afghanistan, and the Taliban, were strong, he was denounced as Washington’s lackey, said The New York Times. At the same time, US officials were frustrated by his perceived reluctance to crush jihadist groups with bases in Pakistan, and the suspicion (later confirmed) that Osama bin Laden was actually hiding out there. Musharraf liked to describe himself as a skilled tightrope walker; but ultimately, he fell off the line.

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