Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf says the war in Iraq is drawing resources from the battle against Al-Qaeda leaders and their supporters. (AFP/PID)

SYDNEY - Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf complained that the war in Iraq was drawing resources from the battle against Al-Qaeda leaders and their supporters hiding in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

In an interview to be broadcast Wednesday night on Australian public television SBS, Musharraf said his government was receiving "very minimal" assistance as it tried to pacify tribal areas along the Afghan border where leaders of Al-Qaeda and the former Afghan Taliban regime are believed hiding.

Asked if the US-led Iraq war has been a distraction from the battle against Al-Qaeda and Taliban remnants by diverting resources from Afghanistan and Pakistan, Musharraf replied: "Yes indeed".

"Money needs to be spent in our tribal areas, where these Al-Qaeda ... or Taliban government agents are, (where) we are operating against them," he told the SBS news program Dateline in remarks that were released in advance.

"We need to carry out reconstruction in the area, (the) army is doing it and the civilians are also doing it," he said.

"Now all this needs money and we are getting some assistance, which is very minimal," he said, adding that more funds were needed to bring the tribal areas into "mainstream" life.

The Pakistani leader also complained that the international security force in Afghanistan (ISAF) was not doing enough to help the central government maintain control over the sprawling country.

"The US forces are acting very well, but the ISAF, let me tell you, that very recently they didn't really want to get out of Kabul," he said.

Outside Kabul, he said, there are "12 or 13 power centers" held by warlords who will continue to act independently "unless there is a force to control that".

© Copyright 2004 AFP

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