Jacob FreezeJun 15th, 2008 - 18:13:52

Most Western readers are probably unawar that General Musharaff prevented a likely escalation of hostilites into nuclear war between India and Pakistan in 1999.

Newspapers and people who read them have more or less forgotten what the little Kargil War and destruction of the Atlantique meant in 1999: Two nuclear armies massed on a narrow and disputed border, while two religious parties threatened each other behind them. The chain of battle-field command over tactical nuclear weapons was unknown.

One of Musharraf's first acts after assuming control of the government in a bloodless coup October 12 was withdrawing the Pakistani Army from the border. According to CENTCOM Commander Anthony Zinni, Musharraf had played a similar role as Army Chief of Staff in ending the Kargil War. The crisis leading to the coup was precipitated by President Sharif's attempt to replace Musharraf as Army Chief of Staff with Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director Khwaja Ziauddin, who had been instrumental in installing the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Considering the rapid escalation of hostility from May to September 1999 between President Sharif's government and the Hindu jingos of the BJP, the most likely alternative to General Musharraf's coup was the nuclear annihilation of tens of millions of people: the shooting had already begun in May.

Those who doubt this summary are invited to read a little about it in relevant histories of the region. If Musharraf falls, insane 'religious' mobs will control Pakistan, border provocations in Kashmir will re-install the BJP in New Delhi, and millions of people are likely forfeit their lives under the compulsion of Hindu and Muslim hate-mongers.

Pakistan and India have already fought five wars since partition. Western governments are propelling them toward a nuclear continuation of hostilities by undermining General Musharraf, and Hamid Karzai's recent threat to invade Pakistan with his ridiculous little army of soldiers borrowed from drug lords can only exacerbate an already dangerous situation.

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