U.S. given back seat in Pakistan investigation

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Pakistan's choice of Britain's Scotland Yard to help investigate the murder of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto puts the United States in the back seat and illustrates its weak credibility, analysts said.

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf announced on Wednesday that he had asked British police to help investigate Bhutto's death in a gun and bomb attack as she left a rally last week.

The White House reiterated previous offers to send the FBI if asked, but the FBI said Pakistan had made no request. An embassy spokesman in Washington said Pakistan would probably share information about the probe with the United States.

A U.S. law-enforcement official said he could not explain why Pakistan chose Scotland Yard over the FBI.

But analysts said Musharraf had little choice but to limit any U.S. role, given that the United States is viewed with mistrust in Pakistan and Musharraf is widely seen as a U.S. pawn.

They said Scotland Yard would be seen as a more neutral consultant. It would also be less likely to focus on any U.S. role in decisions on Bhutto's security, said one analyst.

"The United States is at an all-time low in terms of credibility in Pakistan," said former White House National Security Council official P.J. Crowley, now of the Center for American Progress.

"The dilemma in terms of seeking assistance from the United States is that it may weaken further Musharraf's position. From the government's standpoint, support from Britain is safer," he said.

Musharraf blamed allies of al Qaeda for Bhutto's murder, but many Pakistanis believe others were involved and suspect Musharraf's government of complicity. Bhutto's party has called for a U.N. investigation.

The government's explanation that Bhutto died hitting her head on a sunroof has been met with derision among Pakistanis.

"An investigation done by the Bush administration or elements of the U.S. government at the direction of the Bush administration would not convince anyone," said former CIA officer and South Asia expert Bruce Riedel of the Brookings Institution.

POLITICAL PRESSURE

He said the FBI would also be more likely to come under U.S. election-year political pressure to look into "embarrassing questions" over the Bush's administration's response to Bhutto's requests for help in obtaining more security from the Pakistan government.

Bush administration officials expressed satisfaction with the choice of Scotland Yard.

"We certainly welcome Pakistan's decision to consult U.K. expertise," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said. She said it was important that a "transparent and comprehensive" investigation proceed quickly.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said, "In every single case, it is not going to be the United States that is necessarily in the best position for a variety of different reasons to either take the lead or to be the primary problem solver ... We're going to play a different kind of role," he said without elaborating.

Musharraf's acceptance of any foreign help in the probe was "a big deal," said Center for Strategic and International Studies analyst Teresita Schaffer, a former U.S. diplomat in Islamabad. She said Scotland Yard retains a positive image in Pakistan, which has historic links with Britain and is a member of the Commonwealth.

Scotland Yard also has extensive experience investigating terrorism, Riedel said.

But Scotland Yard faces huge obstacles and it was unclear how much freedom the investigators would have, the analysts said. They cited reports that the assassination scene was quickly hosed clean and the Pakistan government pressured doctors familiar with Bhutto's injuries.

Pennsylvania Republican Sen. Arlen Specter wrote U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to ask that he appoint an investigating commission that could include agencies like Scotland Yard and the FBI. "It is obvious that a U.N. investigation would have greater public credibility," Specter said.

The United Nations is ready to help if Pakistan asks, but Musharraf's government has made no such request, U.N. spokeswoman Michele Montas said.

(Additional reporting by Tabassum Zakaria, David Morgan, Paul Eckert and Patrick Worsnip; Editing by David Storey)