Atlantic Council

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that jihadist groups fighting to expel India from Kashmir are "terrorists" rather than "freedom fighters," the Australian reported.  The statement reverses decades of Pakistani policy over Kashmir and has caused major controversy in the country's military, which has fought three wars with India over the disputed region.

Zardari also said in the interview that he did not object to the recent U.S.-India civil nuclear deal as long as Islamabad was treated equally.  Pakistan is now requesting a similar nuclear agreement with the U.S.

In his first-ever address to parliament, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari today asked them to set up an all-part committee to abolish the new powers granted to his predecessor, Pervez Musharraf, AFP reports.  "As head of the state I wish to make it very clear that the president and the government must always seek guidance from the parliament in carrying out our duties," he said.  "We are committed to upholding the sanctity of the constitution, the supremacy of the parliament and the rule of law," Zardari said.

"Never before in the history of this country has a president given away his powers," he proclaimed. 

Pakistan's new president, Asif Ali Zardari, has pledged to "root out terrorism and extremism wherever and whenever they may rear their ugly heads" but warns that his country's sovereignty is his top priority.  He vowed, "We will not tolerate the violation of our sovereignty and territorial integrity by any power in the name of combating terrorism," BBC reports. VOA adds that Zardari says he will work to free his country from "the shackles of poverty, hunger, terrorism, and disunity."

President Bush secretly gave the go-ahead allowing US Special Operations forces to conduct raids inside Pakistan.  According to the New York Times, the President approved orders in July that meant assaults could be carried out inside Pakistan without permission from the Pakistani government.  The new orders reflect the deteriorating situation which has allowed Al-Qaeda 'safe havens' to flourish in the tribal areas on the border with Afghanistan.

However, Pakistan’s top army officer said that his forces would not tolerate American incursions like the one that took place last week and that the army would defend the country’s sovereignty “at all costs.”  It is unclear what authority the US has in conducting ground raids inside a friendly country, although the CIA has been launching missiles at militant bases inside Pakistan for years.

Pakistan's newly sworn-in president Asif Ali Zardari vowed to fight Islamist militants and cooperate with Afghanistan in cross-border operations aimed at preventing terrorism. Taking oath earlier today, Mr Zardari paid tribute to his late wife, Benazir Bhutto, stating: "I accept this in her name and in the name of all the martyrs of democracy." However he offered little information relating to domestic policy. According to the BBC, this came as a disappointment to many Pakistani's who had hoped for a more concrete pledge with regards to tackling the country's rising inflation and economic instability.

Asif Ali Zardari, the widower of assassinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, has been elected as Pakistan's new president.  CNN reports that "The election was not by public vote, but rather by lawmakers in the two houses of the National Assembly and in the four provincial assemblies around the country."  Pakistan's PTV reports that Zardari received 281 votes, retired Chief Justice Saeed-uz-Zaman Siddiqui received 111, and Senator Mushahid Hussein received 34.

Reuters notes that, "The presidency caps a remarkable transformation for Zardari, who spent 11 years in prison on charges of corruption and murder, although he denied all accusations and was never convicted."