The UN commission probing the assassination of former Pakistani premier Benazir Bhutto has sought access to former military ruler Pervez Musharraf, army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, the ISI chief and other senior military officers for questioning.

The commission conveyed this request in a formal letter to the Pakistani government, media reports said on Friday.

The Foreign Office has received a letter from Mark Quarterman, chief of staff of Heraldo Munoz, the head of the UN commission, asking the government to arrange a meeting of investigators with Musharraf.

"They have shown a desire to meet the top leadership of the army and the ISI and, if there is an inability, the commission would have to reflect it in the final report," the letter said.

The commission said it would be willing to meet representatives of the army chief and the head of the Inter-Services Intelligence agency if they were unavailable.

Musharraf resigned as President last year and has been out of Pakistan since mid-April. There is little possibility of him returning to the country in the near future.

Under the terms of reference signed by the government and the UN commission, Pakistan is obliged to provide access to any official and individual and any material required for the probe.

The terms of reference state that the commission will enjoy the full cooperation of the government, which will also comply with all requests for help in collecting information and testimony.

The terms of reference further state that the commission will have free access to all places and establishments relevant to its work, freedom of access to all sources of information, including documentary material and physical evidence, and freedom to interview representatives of governmental and other institutions.

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