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Zardari Poised to Lead Pakistan

Posted on: Friday, 5 September 2008, 18:00 CDT

The spouse of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto poised to follow Pervez Musharraf as the country's leader has a pro-West bent, an analyst says.

If he is elected president Saturday, Asif Ali Zardari must shake off unproven charges of corruption that have dogged him and reassure that he can fight the Taliban insurgency, The New York Times reported.

However, analysts say Zardari could be just right for the job of managing the Pakistan-U.S. alliance.

A former resident of New York, Zardari opts for tailored, two-piece suits over the traditional salwar-kameez politicians usually wear in Pakistan, where Muslims are a majority, The Washington Post reported.

"He is much more aligned with the U.S., and even more so after his wife's death," retired Pakistani Lt. Gen. Talat Masood, a political analyst, told the Post. "He is also by temperament and background oriented toward the West."

Questions about Zardari's mental health surfaced last month after court documents in a British corruption case were made public. The documents indicate a psychiatrist found Zardari suffered from dementia, post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.

The candidates opposing Zardari for president said the history of mental illness should bar him from running for office.

Source: United Press International

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