PAKISTANI LEADER FACES PRESSURE OVER MEMO

[Mr. Haqqani has been accused of having a memo sent in May to Adm. Mike Mullen, then the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, asking the United States to help prevent a coup in Pakistan and in exchange offering help with the war on Islamic militants and an array of other diplomatic and security considerations.]

 By Salman Masood And Waqar Gillani

Joshua Roberts/Bloomberg News

The ambassador Husain Haqqani said 

he  would quit in an effort to end 

a controversy.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pressure mounted Sunday on President Asif Ali Zardari to investigate allegations that Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States had sought American help to rein in the Pakistani military, as opposition politicians called for action and records appearing to implicate the ambassador were leaked to the news media.

The ambassador, Husain Haqqani, returned to Islamabad, the Pakistani capital, on Sunday and met briefly with Mr. Zardari, according to an aide to the ambassador, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The two were planning to meet again on Monday.

Mr. Haqqani has been accused of having a memo sent in May to Adm. Mike Mullen, then the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, asking the United States to help prevent a coup in Pakistan and in exchange offering help with the war on Islamic militants and an array of other diplomatic and security considerations.

Mr. Haqqani, who denies having anything to do with the memo, has offered to resign and was recalled by the government to explain his position.

The main opposition leader, Nawaz Sharif, a former prime minister, added his voice on Sunday to those demanding an investigation, saying the government should determine the authenticity of the memo and its contents within two days.

“Otherwise, we will move a petition in the Supreme Court for taking action,” Mr. Sharif warned at a rally of thousands of his supporters in Faisalabad, in Punjab Province. He did not specify the kind of action he had in mind, but critics have called for punishments ranging from Mr. Haqqani’s resignation to his prosecution on treason charges.

The claim that Mr. Haqqani was behind the memo to Admiral Mullen was first made in October by Mansoor Ijaz, an American businessman of Pakistani origin, who said Mr. Haqqani had asked him to ensure it was delivered. A former spokesman for Admiral Mullen said he had received the memo, but did not find it credible and took no action.

The unsigned memo, whose authenticity has yet to be ascertained, was published Friday by The News, a leading English-language newspaper in Pakistan.

Citing a “dangerous devolution” of security in Pakistan after the killing of Osama bin Laden, and the possibility of a military coup, the memo asked the United States for “direct intervention in conveying a strong, urgent and direct message” to the military, demanding that it end its “brinkmanship.”

In exchange, according to the memo, Pakistan offered what amounted to an American policy wish list.

The memo said Pakistan would prosecute any officials found to have been involved in harboring Bin Laden, hand over the remaining Pakistan-based leadership of Al Qaeda, allow American forces to conduct military operations against terrorist groups on Pakistani soil, bring Pakistan’s nuclear program under “a more verifiable, transparent regime,” eliminate the section of the military intelligence agency that deals with the Taliban, and cooperate with India in the prosecution of terrorists.

The News also published what it said were BlackBerry messages between Mr. Haqqani and Mr. Ijaz that appeared to show the two discussing details of the memo, with Mr. Haqqani saying it had been approved by “the boss,” a reference, Mr. Ijaz said, to President Zardari.

The ostensible Pakistani offers have inflamed nationalist and opposition politicians at least as much as the request to press the military to back down. Mr. Sharif accused President Zardari of “compromising the country’s sovereignty.”

“This is the worst disrespect,” Mr. Sharif said. “Writing to another country, asking it to control our army, instead of resolving matters on our own.”

Mr. Haqqani has said that he will cooperate with any government inquiry and is willing to hand over his BlackBerry handsets for forensic examination.

Pakistani news media reported Sunday that Lt. Gen. Ahmad Shuja Pasha, the head of the powerful Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, or ISI, met with Mr. Ijaz in London on Oct. 22, where Mr. Ijaz handed over what he said were his communications with Mr. Haqqani.

An ISI official declined to comment on the London meeting, but also called for an immediate government inquiry.

According to Pakistani news media accounts, President Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani agreed to recall Mr. Haqqani after they were provided with evidence against him by the army chief, Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, last week.

Ahmad Mukhtar, the defense minister, said Sunday that if Mr. Haqqani was involved in writing the memo, then Mr. Gilani would also be held accountable.

Salman Masood reported from Islamabad, and Waqar Gillani from Faisalabad.

 @ The New York Times

PAKISTANI ENVOY OFFERS TO RESIGN OVER MEMO

[Supporters of Mr. Haqqani say that he maintains close contacts with American officials, including Admiral Mullen, and did not need an intermediary to deliver a message, especially one as explosive and diplomatically delicate as what was said to be included in the memo.]

 By Salman Masood

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States, Husain Haqqani, has offered to resign amid a political and diplomatic storm in Pakistan over a mysterious memo, which asks for American help in dealing with the Pakistani military and Mr. Haqqani is accused of orchestrating.

Mr. Haqqani denies any involvement with the memo, but he said he offered to resign to end the continuing controversy.

The claims that Mr. Haqqani wrote the memo were made by Mansoor Ijaz, an American citizen of Pakistani origin, who said he was asked to ensure the delivery of the document to Adm. Mike Mullen, who was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the time.

Mr. Ijaz described the memo, which he has not made public, as saying that the civilian government in Pakistan was seeking help in preventing a possible military coup in May. The military had just suffered humiliation over the American raid into Pakistan that killed Osama bin Laden.

Mr. Ijaz said that the memo indicated that Pakistan promised, in return, to dismantle a part of its premier intelligence agency — which some American officials have come to distrust.

On Wednesday, Admiral Mullen’s former spokesman, Capt. John Kirby, said that the memo was delivered, but that Admiral Mullen “did not find the memo at all credible.”

“Therefore,” Captain Kirby said, “he addressed it with no one.”

Captain Kirby added that the memo was unsigned and was delivered by someone other than Mr. Ijaz.

Supporters of Mr. Haqqani say that he maintains close contacts with American officials, including Admiral Mullen, and did not need an intermediary to deliver a message, especially one as explosive and diplomatically delicate as what was said to be included in the memo.

The controversy over the memo threatens to further aggravate the differences between Pakistan’s civilian government and the powerful military.

Many people in Pakistan view Mr. Haqqani as too close to the United States because he often pushes for closer cooperation between the countries. Before becoming ambassador, Mr. Haqqani was also a vocal critic of the military, but since taking his job he has sometimes been supportive of the military in speaking with American officials. Many in the Pakistani military view him with suspicion.

The prime minister announced this week that Mr. Haqqani had been told that he needed to return to Pakistan to answer questions about the memo.

Mr. Haqqani said the decision of whether he continued at his job or not rested with President Asif Ali Zardari.

“I do not want this nonissue of an insignificant memo written by a private individual and not considered credible by its lone recipient to undermine democracy,” Mr. Haqqani said in an e-mail.

The news of the memo first surfaced last month when Mr. Ijaz wrote an op-ed article for The Financial Times. At the time, he did not name the diplomat he said he was behind the memo. He only recently said it was Mr. Haqqani.

Thom Shanker contributed reporting from Washington, and Matthew Rosenberg from New York.

@ The New York Times (November 17, 2011)