Pakistan again poses dilemma for US

The commission that investigated the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks said it flatly: The role of Pakistan in the struggle against Islamic terrorism can't be overstated.

All this has many critics wondering if the Bush administration is pressing Pakistan hard enough to fight terror and extremism, or if a country wavering on the edge of chaos could be pushed to do more.

They worry the administration may be ignoring a time bomb and a nuclear time bomb at that.

To assure Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's support on al-Qaida, they say, the administration hasn't pressed him enough on fighting nuclear proliferation. Nor has it pushed him on Pakistan's lack of democracy, its poor human rights record or its extremist-teaching schools.

Some fear those factors could lead to turmoil in Pakistan resulting in America's worst nightmare: a hostile, nuclear-armed Islamic state.

For US policy-makers, it's a dilemma: How far can they go in seeking changes in Pakistan without alienating Mu{harraf or driving his shaky government to the brink of collapse?

"Our relationship with Pakistan is probably the most complex of that of any country," said California Rep. Tom Lantos, the top Democrat on the House International Relations Committee.

Pakistan has been seen as one of President Bush's successes. Before the Sept. 11 attacks, Pakistan had strongly supported the Taliban government in Afghanistan that gave refuge to al-Qaeda. But two days after the attacks, the United States pressed Pakistan to end cooperation with the Taliban and provide military and intelligence assistance.