Musharraf seeks China's military help to counter India

0 Comments | Asian Political News, May 21, 2001

ISLAMABAD, May 15 Kyodo

Pakistani leader Gen. Pervez Musharraf said Tuesday that Pakistan expects continued Chinese assistance in maintaining a minimum military deterrence against archrival India.

''As a close neighbor, China has always played a crucial and positive role for peace and stability in South Asia,'' Musharraf said in a speech one day after the conclusion of Chinese Prime Minister Zhu Rongji's four-day visit to Pakistan.

''This role will remain vital, especially so in changing geo-strategic realities,'' he said, speaking at the Pakistan Institute of Strategic Studies.

Musharraf said the nuclearization of South Asia three years ago, when both India and Pakistan conducted underground nuclear tests, has added a ''new dimension to the perennial tensions'' in the region.

He declared that Pakistan would not compromise in its insistence on maintaining a minimum deterrence against an attack from India, adding that it expects Chinese assistance to help maintain a strategic balance in the region.

China has helped Pakistan in its defense preparedness and has often been accused by the United States of assisting the country in its nuclear and missile development program.

''Defense cooperation remains strong and will continue within the bounds of international regimes,'' Musharraf said.

About relations with India, Musharraf said Pakistan desired peace with India with dignity and honor. But he said peace was not possible without solving the dispute over Kashmir.