WASHINGTON, Nov 22: US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has indicated that Washington will still like President Gen Pervez Musharraf and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto to work together.

“We obviously also still believe that moderate forces ought to try to come together to present a unified front against extremism,” she told a briefing in Washington. “Extremism is a problem in Pakistan.”

Ms Rice then named the two leaders who have been targeted by the extremists — President Musharraf and Ms Bhutto — and said that the attempts on their lives underline the need for moderate forces to work together.

Asked what was the purpose of Deputy Secretary John Negroponte’s visit to Islamabad last weekend and had he achieved his objective, Ms Rice said he went, first of all, to talk about how important it was for Pakistan to get back to the democratic path.

She explained that democratic development includes freeing the media, developing the civil society and economic reforms.

Pakistan, she said, was already pursuing these goals before the emergency rule was clamped on Nov 3.

Ms Rice also echoed the sentiments President George W. Bush expressed in a television interview on Tuesday when he said that President Musharraf has done more for democracy in Pakistan than any other modern leader has.

She credited Gen Musharraf for putting Pakistan on a road to greater realisation of these goals and said: “Look, a lot of that was done by Musharraf himself. And so for him at this point to help put his country back on the road to democratic reform is important.”

Ms Rice said that it’s very clear what the United States expects Gen Musharraf to do.

“We’re looking for him to take off his uniform. We’re looking for the lifting of the state of emergency so that elections can be held in a free and open atmosphere,” she said.

Ms Rice said that Mr Negroponte had a chance to discuss all these objectives when he was in Islamabad and “I think it was extremely important that he go out and talk to the parties.”

She said that the US ambassador in Islamabad, Anne Patterson, was now continuing Mr Negroponte’s mission, “trying to help use American influence to get Pakistan back on a road to democracy because that’s what the Pakistanis deserve.”

Asked if she saw any improvement in the situation since Mr Negroponte’s visit, Ms Rice noted that a number of opposition figures have been released. “That’s a good step. But it’s only one step of what’s needed,” she added.