Zardari feared Army would 8216;take him out8217;

Kayani mulled toppling Zardari; wanted Awami party chief to succeed; had 'little time for' Sharif

Pakistani Army chief Ashfaq Pervez Kayani had mulled toppling Asif Ali Zardari and the civilian President had even made preparations for a coup or assassination,leaked US diplomatic cables have said.

The latest tranche of WikiLeaks published in the media has revealed that Zardari had made extensive preparations in case of his own assassination and instructed his son Bilawal to name his sister,Faryal Talpur,as president.

The cables revealed that the US vice president told British Prime Minister Gordon Brown that Zardari had told him 8220;Kayani will take me out8221;.

The shadowy conspiracies and the tensions between President Zardari and the powerful Army has come out as Kayani is quoted telling the US Ambassador during a March 2009 meeting that he 8220;might however reluctantly8221; pressure Zardari to resign.

Kayani was quoted as saying that he might support Asfandyar Wali Khan,leader of the Awami National Party as the new President 8212; and not Zardari8217;s arch foe Nawaz Sharif. The powerful Army chief revealed that he had little time for the leader of the Opposition,Sharif.

8220;Kayani made it clear regardless how much he dislikes Zardari,he distrusted Nawaz Sharif even more,8221; the US Ambassador Anne Patterson wrote.

8216;Guardian8217; quoting the leaked documents said Zardari is frank about the strength of the Taliban 8212; 8220;I8217;m sorry to say this but we are not winning8221; the war against extremists,he told US Vice-President Joe Biden.

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8220;I am not Benazir,and I know it,8221; he told US ambassador Anne Patterson after his wife8217;s death.

The Pakistan President reportedly feared a fresh Army coup.

According to the 8216;Guardian8217; report based on US cables,Pakistan Opposition leader Nawaz Sharif had a 8220;notoriously difficult personality8221; while his family is noted to have 8220;relied primarily on the Army and intelligence agencies for political elevation8221;.

In a May 2008 meeting with a visiting American Congressional delegation,Zardari reportedly said: 8220;We won8217;t act without consulting with you.8221;

Sharif repeatedly told the US ambassador that he was 8220;pro-American8221;,despite his often critical public stance. He thanked the US for 8220;arranging8221; to have Kayani appointed as Army chief.

8220;The best thing America has done recently,8221; he said.

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8220;The fact that a former Prime Minister believes the US could control the appointment of Pakistan8217;s chief of Army staff speaks volumes about the myth of American influence here,8221; the Ambassador noted afterwards.

After General Pervez Musharraf resigned as president in 2008,ambassador Patterson pressed Zardari to grant him immunity from prosecution.

8220;We believed,as we had often said,that Musharraf should have a dignified retirement and not be hounded out of the country,8221; she said.

The US and Kayani worried that Zardari would renege on his word.

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8220;Zardari is walking tall these days,hopefully not too tall to forget his promise to Kayani and to us on an immunity deal,8221; wrote Patterson. If Zardari didn8217;t protect Musharraf then it would make him look bad.

8220;I have to bring the Army along with me,8221; he said,also noting that the delay 8220;does nothing for Zardari8217;s reputation for trustworthiness8221;.