Bush: Pakistan elections fair, victory for people

By Tabassum Zakaria

ACCRA (Reuters) - President George W. Bush said on Wednesday that elections in Pakistan were fair and a victory for the people, and that he hoped the newly elected officials would be friends of the United States.

"There was a victory for the people of Pakistan and that is there were elections held that have been judged as being fair, and the people have spoken," Bush said at a news conference in Ghana.

"I view that as a significant victory. I view it as a part of the victory on the war on terror," Bush said, adding that fair elections defy extremists who try to intimidate the democratic process.

The party of Pakistan's assassinated former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has begun stitching together a coalition that could topple President Pervez Musharraf after winning most seats in Monday's parliamentary election.

Musharraf said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal published on Wednesday that he was not ready to resign despite big electoral losses for his political allies.

"I appreciate the fact that President Musharraf has done exactly that which he said he was going to do," Bush said.

"He said he'd hold elections, he said he would get rid of his emergency law, and so it's now time for the newly elected folks to show up and form their government. And the question then is will they be friends of the United States? I certainly hope so," Bush said.

The Bush administration considers Musharraf an ally in fighting terrorism. U.S. officials say al Qaeda and Taliban leaders are in the border region of Pakistan and Afghanistan.

"We need Pakistan as an important ally. We've got common interests. We've got interests in dealing with radicals who killed Benazir Bhutto," Bush said.

"We've got interests in helping make sure there is no safe haven from which people can plot and plan attacks against the United States of America and Pakistan," he said.

(Reporting by Tabassum Zakaria; Editing by Catherine Evans)