Claiming that there were officials in President Pervez Musharraf's administration who are associated with extremists, former Pakistani premier Benazir Bhutto has said she is worried about the safety and security of the country's nuclear weapons.
In an interview to Fox News, Bhutto was asked to comment on apprehensions in the US over the fate of Pakistan's nuclear warheads if the situation deteriorates in the country.
"I have the same worry myself. I was shocked when General Musharraf swore in two new judges of the Supreme Court who had given compensation to the mutineers of the Red Mosque. We had a mutiny in the summer where Red Mosque militants tried to take over the city of Islamabad. And those mutineers were given the complex back," Bhutto replied.
Expressing "shock" at the appointment of the judges, Bhutto said, "Every time we arrest a terrorist or an extremist, these judges are going to free those terrorists."
Claiming that she had worked out a roadmap with Musharraf for returning Pakistan to democracy, Bhutto urged the international community to pressure the general to abide by the terms of the agreement.
"I feel that Pakistan is in danger of falling to the extremists; dictatorship has failed to contain extremism. I believe the answer lies in democracy," she said.
The Pakistan People's Party leader accused Musharraf of being worried more about the "influence of spreading democracy than he has been worried about terrorism."
"Right now we are ignoring the real war. And the real war is to save Pakistan by saving democracy and using the strength of the people to turn the tide against extremism," Bhutto said.
Bhutto agreed with Musharraf that the country is being threatened by extremists, but argued that Musharraf cannot solve the problem as he has within his regime people associated with terrorist groups.
"We both agree that extremists are threatening to take over the country. Where I differ is that I find that General Musharraf has, within the administration, the security services, and the political government, many individuals, personalities and groups that were associated with the mujahideen... that later morphed into the Taliban and Al Qaeda," Bhutto said.
The former premier, however, said she would not support any unilateral US military engagement against terrorist hideouts in Pakistan's tribal areas, adding she will take the necessary measures herself.
"There should be no unauthorised violation of Pakistan's sovereignty," she said.
"I think it's the duty of the Pakistani government. If I'm elected as prime minister of Pakistan, my first task would be to regain control of those tribal areas so they cannot destabilise Afghanistan or (Hamid) Karzai's government in nearby Afghanistan and they can't threaten the towns and the people of Afghanistan," Bhutto said.
