“Pakistan is currently governed by a two-party coalition, which took power in parliament after elections this February. The coalition has been unified around little more than hatred of Musharraf. Its leaders — Asif Ali Zardari and Nawaz Sharif — detest each other. They cooperated only to force Musharraf from office, and will now vie for power. Zardari is the widower of former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated in December. Zardari’s party — the Pakistan Peoples party — is center-Left and generally pro-Western. Zardari himself feels no sympathy for the Islamists and favors the continuation of Musharraf’s policies. Sharif, head of the Muslim League-N and a former prime minister of Pakistan (it was he whom Musharraf ousted in 1999), is by comparison more sympathetic to the radicals. He would not likely abandon Musharraf’s pro-U.S. orientation entirely, but could not be counted upon as an ally. There is nothing the U.S. can do to influence the outcome of the contest between Zardari and Sharif, but our hopes should attach to the former. Unfortunately, both are typical Pakistani politicians. What this means is that in practice they are likely to be corrupt and incompetent.” (08/19/08)