WASHINGTON, Sept 30: US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage said on Thursday it was for the Pakistanis to decide whether Gen Pervez Musharraf could continue to retain the posts of the president and the army chief.

Mr Armitage, in an interview to a Pakistani TV channel here, said only the Pakistani nation and their parliament could take such decisions. But his observation that the president was 'driving on the road to democracy' does show that the Bush administration continues to support President Musharraf's concept of controlled democracy.

President Musharraf was "standing at the right place," said Mr Armitage when asked to comment on the president's current position. He urged Pakistan to continue to cooperate with the United States in the war against terrorism, no matter whether President George W. Bush or Senator John Kerry wins the US presidential elections due in November.

Earlier, Mr Armitage told the US Congress he believed Afghanistan would be able to hold its first national elections which would lead to the installation of a sovereign government in Kabul.

The deputy secretary of state said the new Afghan government would need a better security situation to govern successfully. That, he added, demanded, at least for the time being, ongoing international assistance in fighting the Taliban, Al Qaeda and other such elements and in helping Afghanistan develop the security forces it needed to defend itself.

Mr Armitage urged Congress to continue its long-term commitment to Afghanistan as part of a "strategic partnership that will continue to benefit both of our nations for many years to come."