By IANS
Shannon (Ireland) : US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Friday Washington would oppose any move by Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf to impose martial law and that the elections must take place next year, Online news agency reported.
“I am not going to get into the details of our conversations, but I think it would be quite obvious that the United States would not be supportive of extra-constitutional means,” Rice told reporters here.
“Pakistan needs to prepare for and hold free and fair elections,” she said, adding that she had not spoken to Musharraf in recent days,
Rice was speaking to reporters en route to Turkey during a refuelling stop in Shannon in Ireland.
“The political space needs to be prepared by moderate forces, which is why we have been supportive of moderate forces, like Mrs. Bhutto’s return,” Rice said.
The secretary of state said the US government was in constant contact with the leadership and opposition leaders in Pakistan, “but I am not going to speculate on what might happen.”