President General Pervez Musharraf says Pakistan would not send troops to Iraq under the present environment. "Pakistan cannot be coerced; Muslims are the biggest sufferers following 9/11 and no amount of pressure or dictation would be accepted in any matter," Musharraf said in a lengthy interview to two leading Pakistani newspapers, The News and "Jang." "Our forces will not go to Iraq under the present environment but we have not slammed doors on this issue, as policies are changed according to the national interest," he added. The president said Pakistan was never under pressure to send troops to Iraq nor would it allocate troops for Iraq unless three specific conditions are met: First, people of Iraq must invite us; we cannot be seen as extension of the present force there; second, other Muslim countries send troops to Iraq but Pakistan will not lead it, and third, domestic environment is created in favour of this decision. Musharraf said he told this to President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Colin Powell and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and added that even after the passage of the UN Security Council resolution, Pakistan maintained the same position. "We, however, are not shutting our doors, as the situation might change," the president said.
