Persisting with its tough line, the US has asked President Pervez Musharraf to end the emergency rule in Pakistan "as soon as possible" to allow free and fair elections after the General refused to set a timeframe for lifting the curbs.US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice expressed concern that Musharraf has not set a time limit for restoring citizens' rights, as the General, who announced on Sunday that elections would be held by January nine, indicated that the polls might be held under emergency rule."It's not a perfect situation and nobody would suggest this it is," Rice said while terming as a positive sign that Musharraf now has set a timeframe for parliamentary elections."Obviously, we are also encouraging that the state of emergency has got to be lifted, and lifted as soon as possible," she said in an interview to the ABC's "This Week" programme"..This is a country that's going through extraordinarily difficult circumstances. But it is an ally, it is a friend," she said adding the role of the US should be to persuade Pakistan to return to democracy and civilian rule.When asked about Congressional reaction that it is time for Musharraf to go, Rice said the focus should be on holding free and fair elections."It's very easy to speculate and to make snap judgments in a difficult time like this," Rice said. If Musharraf "carries through on his obligations that he's made to us and that he's made to his own people," the road to democracy will be re-established, she added."But the key is to take this in steps. And the first step is to make certain that the state of emergency ends, to make sure that people can compete for free and fair elections for the parliament," Rice said.She said the terrorism and extremism has hurt Pakistani people more than it's hurt anyone else."President Musharraf still has extremely important steps to take beyond the ones that he talked about. He needs to make sure these elections go forward. He needs to lift the state of emergency," Rice added."This is not a personal matter about President Musharraf. This is about the Pakistani people, and the US has been dedicated to helping the Pakistani people come to a more democratic path," Rice said.Rice acknowledged that Washington is indeed reviewing aid in terms of statutory requirements."I don't think anyone wants the president to do anything that would compromise the counter-terrorism mission, which in fact goes to the training of Pakistani forces to be able to deal with extremism. That's extraordinarily important to American security interest," Rice said."We have had assistance to Pakistan to reform its economy, to help it become a more open economy. That's ultimately going to help in the development of a more open political system," she said."After the Soviet war in Afghanistan was finished and the Soviet Union was defeated, we left the Pakistanis, we left the Afghans. We got a failed state in Afghanistan, and we got in Pakistan a more extreme circumstance," Rice said adding "we are standing with Pakistan and the Pakistani people in this extraordinary difficult times".
