WASHINGTON, June 3: Pakistan’s outgoing Ambassador to Unites States, Gen Jehangir Karamat, has advised the government not to involve the army ‘for too long’ in Waziristan and Balochistan because it can be ‘counterproductive’ to do so. He emphasised dialogue to resolve these issues.

Gen Karamat, who leaves for Islamabad later on Saturday after representing Pakistan in Washington for two years, dismissed media speculation as ‘baseless rumours’ that he had been asked to head an interim government before the 2007 elections.

In a wide-ranging interview to Dawn, Gen Karamat said: “We should try to institutionalise our relations with the US and strengthen the Karzai government in Afghanistan because it is in our interest to do so.”

He said that without political and economic stability at home, it would be difficult to project a positive image of Pakistan abroad.

Gen Karamat, also a former army chief, said that in 1997 he could have toppled the Nawaz Sharif government but he did not, because he thought it was not ‘in the national interest’ to undo a democratically elected government.

He said the general impression that Mr Sharif had sacked him was wrong. He recalled that in some statements he had criticised the attitude of the then government towards the Supreme Court. Mr Sharif told him it was not right for a general to publicly criticise the government, he said.

At this stage, Gen Karamat said, he came to the conclusion that it would be better for him to quit than to impose yet another martial law on the country.

The ambassador said he believed the US administration was not seeking direct access to Dr A.Q. Khan and the sudden interest some members of Congress were showing in him was linked to Congressional hearing on the Indo-US deal, which had revived interest in all things nuclear.

Describing the 2007 elections as ‘a huge opportunity’ to establish democracy in Pakistan, he said both PPP and the PML-N should be allowed to participate in these polls.

He, however, advised the leaders of these parties - Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif - not to let their personal interests prevail over party interests.

He acknowledged that in the US Pakistan was routinely blamed for whatever happened in Afghanistan, but pointed out that the sudden increase in insurgency had been caused by summer which allowed insurgents to enhance their activities.

Gen Karamat also advised the Afghan government not to raise these issues publicly and discuss them at the trilateral forum created for the purpose. The forum includes representatives from Pakistan, Afghanistan and the US.