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 ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) - President Gen. Pervez Musharraf held secret talks with opposition leader and former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, a government minister said Saturday. Media widely reported that the once-bitter rivals discussed a power-sharing deal.
Such an alliance could strengthen the increasingly embattled Musharraf by bringing the secular, liberal opposition into his government amid growing concern about a rise in Islamic militancy. Analysts said Pakistan's Western allies would welcome that.
But newspaper and television reports said the talks stalled over Bhutto's insistence that Musharraf, a key U.S. ally in fighting terrorism, must quit his military post if he hopes to remain president.
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