Former Pakistan president: US shouldn't set deadline on troops in Afghanistan

PORTLAND, Ore. - The former president of Pakistan on Monday criticized U.S. plans to begin pulling troops out of Afghanistan in just over a year.

At a stop on his speaking tour, Pervez Musharraf praised President Barack Obama for committing 30,000 more troops to fighting the Taliban. But the former leader was sharply opposed to Obama's plan to begin withdrawing forces in July 2011, saying U.S. soldiers should fight until the Taliban is defeated.

"We are there because we understand how critical it is to the region, to the world," Musharraf said. "We must win."

Obama is too worried about public opinion, the 66-year-old former army chief said.

"Sometimes, in the lives of leaders, you must do the unpopular," he said. "The real test of leadership happens then."

The recent arrests of key Taliban leaders in Pakistan are positive signs but not a major blow to Taliban forces, Musharraf said.

"The Taliban is spread over the Afghan countryside," he said. "I get the feeling here that people think it's a monolith. The Taliban is not a monolith. A person who is the second-most important man? He's not a great impact on the Taliban."

Musharraf took power in Pakistan in a 1999 coup and was forced to resign as president in 2008. Living in London, writing and speaking, he keeps a close watch on the political and military manoeuvrings in Pakistan and the volatile region.

Musharraf said he would return to Pakistan if its people wanted him and if he could help the country.