Rice ‘sways Musharraf on emergency’
Musharraf was said to be considering the move, which would bolster military rule and suspend democratic freedoms, amid security concerns that pose the biggest threat to army chief’s rule since he seized power in a coup in 1999.**
U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack confirmed that Rice called Musharraf early Thursday, characterizing it as a “good discussion,” without providing details.
The government sources said Rice called Musharraf – a key U.S. ally in its so-called war on terror – after media reports that he was considering imposing a state of emergency.
A recent report from the International Crisis Group said **Musharraf](http://topics.cnn.com/topics/pervez_musharraf) was considering the move to retain his grip on power amid a growing opposition movement.
Islamabad said the measure was being considered amid the growing security threat in Pakistan’s lawless tribal regions.
Despite Musharraf’s apparent climbdown, senior U.S. military officials remain deeply concerned that the state of emergency remained a viable option for Pakistan’s leader, according to CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr.**
She said senior U.S. military officials characterized the situation in Pakistan as “topic number one,” amid concerns that Washington does not have a full grasp of what is happening within the Islamabad government or the country’s military at the moment.
“The key question for the U.S.: Is Musharraf doing this because of the internal threat or strictly as a political ploy to put himself in the best position for elections?” Starr said.
"It’s the obvious question of course … the U.S. feels it doesn’t have good answers to that. All of this has the Bush administration and military very concerned about command and control of nuclear weapons in any Pakistanis succession..