Pak army wanted to nuke India during Kargil

BOOKED IN ROW: Clinton asked Sharif on whether the Pakistani leader could be trusted on anything.

J & K | Chhattisgarh | Delhi | MP |
Mizoram | Rajasthan

Featured Blog

Rajdeep Sardesai

26/11: Terror comes precariously close

Featured Slideshows

London: Pakistan was preparing to use nuclear missiles against India during the Kargil war, a new book has claimed, citing an eight-year-old conversation between US President Bill Clinton and Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

The book - Deception: Pakistan, the United States and the Global Nuclear Weapons Conspiracy - written by investigative journalists Adrian Levy and Catherine Scott-Clark says, "When President Clinton met Sharif at Blair House (in July 1999), Clinton asked Sharif if he knew how advanced the threat of nuclear war really was? Did he know, for example that his military was preparing to use nuclear missiles?". Answering Clinton's query, Sharif shook his head implying he was unaware of his military's moves.

Warning Sharif, the President said he had a statement ready for release that would pin all the blame for Kargil on Pakistan if the Prime Minister refused to pull his forces back.

Clinton further questioned Sharif on whether the Pakistani leader could be trusted on anything. The US President reminded Sharif that despite his promise to help bring Osama bin Laden to justice, the ISI had continued to work with bin Laden and the Taliban to foment terrorism and the Americans knew that.

The Americans were unsure as to who was really in control in Islamabad, the book says, as confusion prevailed over whether Sharif was in reality pushed into a war by General Pervez Musharraf, or he attempted to diminish his role in the crisis.

After his meeting with Clinton, Sharif briefly left the room to seek advice.

When he returned, "he was getting exhausted. He denied that he had ordered the preparation of their missile force, said he was against war but was worried for his life in Pakistan", the book said, quoting Bruce Riedel, who was at the National Security Council.

"There was a break in the middle of the day: Clinton lying down on the sofa at Blair House while Sharif went to his hotel room for a nap. When they reconvened, Clinton placed the prepared statement on the table. Sharif left the room again to read it to his advisers and then returned finally ready to order a volte-face and call for his troops to withdraw back to the line of control", Riedel said, adding "The mood changed in a nanosecond. Clinton told Sharif that they had tested their personal relationship hard that day but they had reached the right ending."

Sharif posed for photographs with Clinton at the White House before returning to Dulles airport. "His mood was glum. He was not looking forward to his trip home. The PM knew he had done the right thing for Pakistan and the world, but he was not sure his army would see it that way."

Sharif pulled back the troops.

But two months later his brother Shahbaz Sharif turned up in Washington, the book said.

To read IBNLive stories on mobile, log on to m.ibnlive.com on your mobile browser