24 May 2004	Monday	04 Rabi-us-Saani 1425

WASHINGTON, May 23: Pakistan's readmission into the 53-nation Commonwealth ends the exclusion imposed after President Gen Pervez Musharraf seized power in 1999,The Washington Post observed on Sunday.

The New York Times pointed out that the October 2002 general elections and government's decision to transfer 'the day-to-day running of the government to a prime minister' influenced the Commonwealth's decision to readmit Pakistan.

The Los Angeles Times reported that while accepting Pakistan back into its fold, the Commonwealth said the country had made progress on democratic reforms and urged Gen Musharraf to keep his pledge to leave the Army by December 2004.

The Commonwealth's decision was reported prominently by over 250 news outlets across the world, including almost all major newspapers in the United States.

Some newspapers, such as The Washington Post, drew a link between the decision and the role Pakistan is playing in the US-led war against terror, noting that the United States has strongly supported Pakistan on various international platforms.

"Pakistan has already been embraced by the United States as a major ally and has helped in the US-led war against terror," it said.