Boucher in Islamabad on Friday. (Reuters)

Islamabad, June 15 (AP): President Pervez Musharraf must keep Pakistan’s elections fair, US assistant secretary of state Richard Boucher said today.

He also stressed that Washington can accept the Pakistan strongman holding onto his dual role as President and army chief.

Boucher, interviewed by several Pakistani television channels today, said Washington felt that “it’s time for Pakistan to move back to democratic elections and civilian rule”.

However, the US diplomat said “the issue of a free and fair election is much more fundamental” than how Musharraf deals with the presidency and the powerful army leadership.

“That particular question needs to be answered but I think we have a bit of patience in seeing it answered at whatever is the appropriate time,” Boucher said, according to excerpts from the interviews released by the US embassy.

The remarks come amid a flurry of visits by senior US officials to Islamabad that have fanned talk in Pakistan about whether Washington might distance itself from a military leader whose domestic support appears to be waning.

That speculation follows calls from some influential US lawmakers for Washington to reduce its support for Pakistan because of its perceived failings in dealing with the Taliban and in restoring democracy.

Boucher lauded the “enormous” achievements and sacrifices made by Pakistan, which has captured hundreds of al Qaida suspects, including several top leaders, and lost hundreds of soldiers battling militants near the Afghan border.

However, he said more had to be done in both Pakistan and Afghanistan to eliminate “spaces where terrorists can plot and plan”, including in Pakistan’s wild border region.

Boucher, who has been in Pakistan since Tuesday, was joined today by both deputy secretary of state John Negroponte and Admiral William Fallon, commander of the US Central Command.