‘Failure of West leadership’ behind troop pullout from Afghanistan: Musharraf
By ANIFriday, October 1, 2010
LONDON - Former Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf has said that pressure to pullout western troops out of Afghanistan shows failure of leadership on the part of Britain and America.
He said the Taliban could be defeated only if Western troops were not pulled out.
Musharraf, who now lives in exile in London, denied facing charges of treason if he returned to his country and said he intended to do so, although he said he risked assassination, The Telegraph reports.
He told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: “There is a failure of leadership. Nobody is educating the people who are demanding their soldiers (should) come back that this would be the worst decision. This will be a blunder.”
“People here or in the United States think you are fighting someone else’s war. ‘When the leaders do not tell the masses for political reasons, the mass appeal is to get your soldiers back, but that is not the right think to do,” Musharraf said.
Asked if he believed the Taliban could be defeated, he replied: “Yes indeed. I think they can be defeated.”
Musharraf also said that he would return to Pakistan. “There is no charge against me. There are other dangers. I will take the risk but I will take the risk at the right time.” (ANI)
