Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf thinks that if he steps down as head of state the US will go for direct military attacks on tribal areas and will also take away nuclear scientist A Q Khan for interrogation.

Official sources told Dawn on Sunday that the President was also of the view that the Gwadar port project would be adversely affected if he left the scene and time-tested relations with China could suffer a setback.

Similarly, Musharraf believes that in his absence no leader or party will be able to maintain cordial relations with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement.

In view of the likely negative fallout, the sources said, the President had no intention to quit the post to which he had been elected for five years. They claimed that his decision to stay in office was more in “national interest” than in his own.

The sources said it was Musharraf who was keeping the US away from A Q Khan. They said the US had been seeking access to Khan for interrogation but it was the President who had resisted pressure and kept Khan in safe custody at home.

It was also because of Musharraf’s personal links with US President George Bush, the sources claimed, that the US was not attacking tribal areas. However, they said, the situation would change if he resigned.

The sources said the US and many other countries were opposed to the deep-sea Gwadar port project and they did not want to see it functional mainly because of China’s role in the project. Musharraf, the sources claimed, was determined to get the project completed without any foreign interference. In case Pakistan gave in to foreign pressures, its relations with China would be adversely affected.

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