Terrorist can't take over our nukes, asserts Musharraf

Islamabad: There is no possibility of extremists coming to power in Pakistan or of terrorists taking over the country's nuclear arsenal, President Pervez Musharraf said on Thursday.

Interacting with the international media during a programme for state-run PTV, Musharraf dismissed international concerns about the safety of the country's strategic assets due to the heightened political uncertainty and the crisis caused by the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

"There is no possibility of extremists coming into government in Pakistan and therefore taking over the (nuclear) assets...through the political or the democratic system," he said.

There is also no threat to the nuclear arsenal "from terrorists and extremists", he said.

"We guard our strategic and nuclear assets very zealously. We cannot accept any kind of threat to them at all," Musharraf said, adding there is "excellent custodial control" over the atomic arsenal that is "as good as any other nuclear country".

Musharraf also rejected the perception that al-Qaeda is growing stronger in Pakistan and had extended its influence from the restive north-western tribal areas bordering Afghanistan to parts of the North West Frontier Province and other regions.

The Pakistani President, however, admitted that, "Taliban is the main concern that we need to tackle more effectively".

Nineteen suicide bombings carried out in the last three months of 2007 had been traced to Pakistani Taliban commanders Baitullah Mehsud from South Waziristan and Maulana Fazlullah of Swat valley in the NWFP.

He also ruled out suggestions that it would be easy for the security forces to trace and apprehend Mehsud as they were already intercepting his communications and phone conversations.

"Getting him means battling thousands of people (from his) Mehsud tribe and it means collateral damage," he said, adding the security forces had to act cautiously.

Al-Qaeda provided the "masterminds, resource suppliers, financiers and facilitators" while the actual attacks are carried out by the Taliban, Musharraf said.

Musharraf has blamed Mehsud for masterminding the suicide attack on Benazir, but her Pakistan People's Party and the Taliban commander himself have denied involvement in her assassination.