Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf has blamed Moscow's pro-India policy as an obstacle in the qualitative development of Russia-Pakistan relations in the post-cold war world.
"I'll be open with you. The fact that Russian foreign policy is fully focused on India is an obstacle for improving relations between Pakistan and Russia," Musharraf said in an interview on Thursday.
"We have built good relationship with Russia. But the situation is quite complicated and mainly depends on relations between the leaders. My personal relationship with President Putin is excellent. But many people are still living in the past, and the main task is to live for the future," he said.
"I am afraid that an obstacle lay in Russia, but not in Pakistan. Our relationship should be built on a purely bilateral basis, and it means that no third country should interfere in it," he underscored.
Justifying Islamabad's nuclear option due to "threat from India" Musharraf, however, said that Iran has no such threat from any quarter.
"Before our two countries became nuclear powers, our policy had been based on the principles of control. India then became a nuclear power, and the balance of forces was broken. We had to restore it. If the world wanted us not to possess nuclear weapons, they should have stopped India," he said.
Pakistan advocates non-proliferation and making South Asia nuclear weapon free region and would give up its nuclear weapons if India does the same, Musharraf said.
{{/usCountry}}Pakistan advocates non-proliferation and making South Asia nuclear weapon free region and would give up its nuclear weapons if India does the same, Musharraf said.
{{/usCountry}}"We have the right to obtain nuclear weapon and demand that Iran should adhere to the non-proliferation regime," Musharraf said justifying Islamabad's stand on Iranian nuclear issue.