Zardari meeting with US envoy flayed

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Eyebrows are being raised at Pakistan People's Party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari's meeting with US Ambassador Anne W Patterson after it emerged as the largest group in the general election.

Instead of meeting other political leaders, Zardari drove to the US ambassador's house on Wednesday.

"Have you ever heard of or seen India's Sonia Gandhi going to the American Embassy even while in opposition?" said Shireen Mazari, director general of the Institute of Strategic Studies, a think tank.

"I think it is unfortunate that the leader of a major political party felt it necessary to rush and meet the American envoy in Pakistan before he met fellow politicians. I have nothing against meetings with diplomats but they must call on party leaders," she told The News.

The Nation newspaper ran an editorial titled Counsel

uncalled for on the Zardari-Patterson meeting.

"It is an unfortunate reality though that Pakistan's own subservient behaviour over the years has led Washington to take liberties with its sovereign rights and interfere in its affairs," it said.

"But that precisely causes a backlash among the people, annoys them greatly and reinforces their antipathy towards the US...Outsiders, if they were interested in democratic values to take root here, should let Pakistanis sort out the issue."

Former Inter-Services Intelligence agency chief Gen (retired) Hamid Gul too was unhappy at Zardari's call on the US envoy. "This is never done. Our party leaders whom the people have returned with a heavy mandate should be respected," he said.

"Arm-twisting them at a time like this when Pakistan is at a difficult stage clearly shows that they are not really our true friends. We have paid with our blood and today our politicians should at least respect the wishes of the people of Pakistan," Gul said.

According to former foreign secretary Tanveer Khan, it is not just the Americans but also the European diplomats who are quite "active" in Pakistan's political scene.

"Certainly the Americans have not abandoned their original game plan but there was a setback after the assassination of (former premier and PPP chief) Benazir Bhutto. The recent election results have also taken them by surprise and at the moment I see the Americans exploring what their next move should be," Khan said.