Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf admitted Monday that the days of Afghanistan's ruling Taliban appeared numbered, saying he was "re-evaluating" his country's ties with it.
In an interview on BBC World Service radio, he said Pakistan was trying to "interact" with the Taliban rather than "save" them.
Asked if the regime's days were numbered, he said: "It appears so."
"It appears that the United States will take action in Afghanistan, and we have conveyed this to the Taliban... that was the reason we were interacting with them so that some moderation takes place and maybe this kind of action is averted," he said.
"But it appears that because of the stand that the Taliban have taken that confrontation will take place."
The Taliban regime is accused of harboring Osama bin Laden, chief suspect for the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States.
Pakistan is the only nation that still recognizes the Islamic regime, which is being ostracized by the rest of the world.
Musharraf defended the policy, saying it had been the only realistic thing to do before September 11 as it held 95 percent of Afghanistan.
"Once the reality changes and the situation on the ground changes, you have to re-evaluate your policies and you reformulate them," he added.
"There has been a change of reality, so we have reformulated our policy -- LONDON (AFP)
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