Condoleezza Rice's Tenure As Secretary of State - Pakistan

Pakistan

When President Pervez Musharaff imposed a state of emergency in November 2007, it was rumored that she called General Musharaff and asked him not to impose a state of emergency. For the time being the General listened to the advice. However, on November 3, 2007 General Musharaff imposed a state of emergency despite opposition from Rice.

In the aftermath of the defeat of Musharaff's own PML-Q in the election of February 18, 2008, Rice stated the US position saying that "How they arrange their coalition is really a Pakistani affair. The President of Pakistan is Pervez Musharraf... And so, of course, we will deal with him. We will continue to pursue the American interests, which are for a stable and democratic Pakistan."

Secretary Rice on December 1, 2008 urged Pakistan to give its "absolute, total" cooperation in finding those responsible for the previous week's attacks in Mumbai, India. Rice then visited Islamabad on December 4, saying Pakistan "understands its responsibilities" in responding to terrorism in the wake of the attacks, and that the sophisticated nature of the attacks underscored the need for a swift and thorough investigation. "That means there is urgency to getting to the bottom of it," she said, " . . . to bringing the perpetrators to justice, and there is urgency to using the information to disrupt and prevent further attacks." Rice told reporters she was "quite satisfied" with her talks with senior government and military officials, but a senior Pakistani official said the tone was tougher in private, with Rice emphasizing U.S. expectations that Pakistan aggressively pursue evidence against militant groups.