Bush calls for elections in Pakistan

President George Bush called on Pakistan’s president Pervez Musharraf today to hold elections and relinquish his army post “as soon as possible”.

He said he instructed secretary of state Condoleezza Rice to deliver that message in a telephone call with Gen Musharraf.

Mr Bush made his comments at the White House in Washington after a meeting with Turkey’s prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

It was his first public comment on the political crisis in Pakistan since Gen Musharraf imposed a state of emergency.

Mr Bush would not discuss what action he might take – for example, how much US aid to Pakistan would be cut – if Gen Musharraf ignores his request.

“It’s a hypothetical,” he said. “I certainly hope he does take my advice.”

But the president made a point of praising Pakistan’s co-operation in the war on terror, and seemed resigned that, as a result, there is little concrete action he can take to influence Gen Musharraf’s behaviour.

“All we can do is continue to work with the president ... to make abundantly clear the position of the United States,” he said.