07 November 2001
Transcript: U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan on CNN
(Amb. Chamberlin says Musharraf's actions are in Pakistan's interests)
(1160)
The U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan said November 7 she is confident that
Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf is "in a strong position" as he
heads to New York to attend a UN General Assembly session.
In an interview with CNN, Ambassador Wendy Chamberlin said that
President Musharraf's actions since the September 11 terrorist attacks
have been in Pakistan's interests.
"His people understand that," she said, adding, "His military is
professional and loyal. They support him, and they support his current
policies. They support the change in his policy vis-à-vis
Afghanistan, and they support very much his movement towards joining
the coalition against terror."
Chamberlin, who began her ambassadorship August 13, said that she
maintains a "very good relationship" with President Musharraf and his
senior staff.
Commenting on the vocal opposition on the streets to Musharraf's
policies, the Ambassador said that it "represents a very small segment
of the Pakistani society. These are the extremist parties. But the
four major parties support him, as does the military, the
intellectuals, the silent majority."
"They want to see an end to this pollution of terrorism and violence
that has come into Pakistan from Afghanistan," she said.
Following is the CNN transcript:
(begin transcript)
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
November 7, 2001
INTERVIEW OF WENDY CHAMBERLIN, US AMBASSADOR TO PAKISTAN, BY CNN
November 7, 2001
Washington, D.C.
7:30 A.M. EST
QUESTION: The head of the key front line ally in the US-led war
against terrorism, Pakistan's President, General Pervez Musharraf, is
on his way from Islamabad to New York to attend the UN General
Assembly session. While in New York, Mr. Musharraf will meet with
President Bush.
Joining us now for some perspective on this critical relationship is
the US Ambassador to Pakistan, Wendy Chamberlin, who is in Washington
for talks with Administration officials.
Ms. Chamerblin, good to have you with us.
AMBASSADOR CHAMBERLIN: I'm delighted to be here. Thank you.
QUESTION: You took the job on August 13th, and in less than a month,
everything changed and turned on a dime. I'm curious if you -- well,
you couldn't have anticipated the challenges that lay ahead. How much
access have you had to the Musharraf administration, and do you feel
there is a good open line of communication right now?
AMBASSADOR CHAMBERLIN: Well, that is certainly true. We have a very
close relationship, not only with the President and myself, but also
with his senior departmental heads and cabinet members. We have a very
good relationship.
QUESTION: Well, tell me this. Do you feel that his control on power
there is such that he can afford to take a trip to the United States
right now?
AMBASSADOR CHAMBERLIN: Quite frankly, I think he has -- he is a
stronger position with his people and in his country than he was even
before September 11th. I think that --
QUESTION: Really? Why would you say that?
AMBASSADOR CHAMBERLIN: Very clearly because the decisions he has made
and the changes that he has instituted have been in Pakistan's
interests. And his people understand that. His military is
professional and loyal. They support him, and they support his current
policies. They support the change in his policy vis-à-vis
Afghanistan, and they support very much his movement towards joining
the coalition against terror.
QUESTION: He has also done a pretty good job eliminating potential
opposition in the military, scientists in the nuclear program there
that might be -- have some allegiance to the Taliban. Is he operating
in such a way that he keeps a firm grip on power, and is it possible
he might be going too far?
AMBASSADOR CHAMBERLIN: No, I don't think he is going too far. I think
he is getting stronger with each one of these decisions and with each
one of these moves. He is confident, and he has every reason to be.
The opposition that you see in the streets represent a very small
segment of the Pakistani society. These are the extremist parties. But
the four major parties support him, as does the military, the
intellectuals, the silent majority. They want to see an end to this
pollution of terrorism and violence that has come into Pakistan from
Afghanistan. They want to see a stable Afghanistan on their western
border. And he is bringing about that.
QUESTION: What about the stability of the nuclear weapons inside
Pakistan? Command and control, a big concern here, because not only is
the concern about forces loyal to the Taliban getting a hold of
nuclear weapons a real issue, an issue the President brought out
yesterday, but there is also the concern that the Kashmir conflict
might escalate into some sort of nuclear confrontation with India. Do
you have the sense, and do you have a very clear sense of where all
these Pakistani bombs are, and whether they are under the proper
controls?
AMBASSADOR CHAMBERLIN: We are in consultations with Pakistan on this.
Both the Kashmir issue and the nuclear command and control issues
aren't new. They preceded September 11th. We are confident that
President Musharraf has control of his country and of his assets.
But of course the issues with Kashmir have been around ever since the
birth of the state of Pakistan, in fact, and we are encouraging
dialogue between India and Pakistan.
QUESTION: But more to the point of nuclear weapons, do you feel that
there is adequate control in place to ensure that those weapons don't
fall into hands that might be tempted to use them against the US, for
example?
AMBASSADOR CHAMBERLIN: I don't think that there is any threat that
they will fall into the hands of people that would use those against
the US.
QUESTION: All right. Ramadan is upon us, and there has been a lot of
talk as to whether the US-led campaign, the bombing campaign and
limited ground action, should continue during this holy holiday, this
Muslim holiday. President Musharraf apparently has gone along with the
idea that this should continue. At what risk, though? Does this --
will this potentially inflame forces who are loyal to the Taliban
within Pakistan, and could this ultimately topple Mr. Musharraf?
AMBASSADOR CHAMBERLIN: No. It is not likely to be a threat to
President Musharraf. Of course, there are some sensitivities, but
President Musharraf has looked at these and weighed them thoughtfully,
and has made the judgment that it is far more important that we --
that the coalition, the international coalition against terror,
accomplish its objective as quickly as possible. And if that means
continuing the effort during Ramadan, he is in support of that. He has
been very clear on that point.
QUESTION: Wendy Chamberlin is the US Ambassador to Pakistan. Thanks
very much for spending some time with us. We appreciate it.
AMBASSADOR CHAMBERLIN: Thank you.
END 7:35 A.M. EST
(end transcript)
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