Musharraf pressed Iran to abandon nuclear program: Wikileaks

KARACHI: Secret US cables have revealed that the government of president Musharraf had been discouraging Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

The cables from May 2006 revealed that on several occasions then president Pervaiz Musharraf, prime minister Shaukat Aziz and foreign minister Kuhrshid Kasuri told Iranian officials not to acquire nuclear weapons. Pakistan also acted as a messenger between the US and Iran.

The cables also revealed that in a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmedinejad and vice president Parvaiz Davoodi, Musharraf said that Iran should roll back its nuclear program because it was creating difficulties for its neighbours including Pakistan.

Pakistan had also advised Iran not to make provocative statements against Israel. The cables further stated that in a meeting between foreign minister Khurshid Kasuri and US Senator Chuck Hagel, Kasuri said that one of the reasons for Pakistan piling on pressure on Iran was that Pakistan wanted to be the only Muslim country with nuclear weapons.