London, Sept 26 (ZEENEWS.COM) The US Central Intelligence Agency paid Pakistan millions of dollars for handing over more than 350 suspected al Qaeda terrorists to the United States, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has said, The Times reported on Monday.

The assertions come in the military ruler`s upcoming memoir "In the Line of Fire", serialised in The Times.

Musharraf does not reveal how much Pakistan was paid for the 369 al Qaeda suspects he ordered should be handed over to the United States, the newspaper said, noting, however, that such payments are banned by the US Government.

The newspaper does not, however, print or quote the excerpts which make the allegations.

In response a US Department of Justice official was quoted as saying: "We didn`t know about this. It should not happen. These bounty payments are for private individuals who help to trace terrorists on the FBI`s most wanted list, not foreign governments."

The Pakistani leader`s claims come after he said last week that former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage had threatened to bomb Pakistan if it did not back the United States in the so-called "war on terror" in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks, described by Musharraf as "What has to be the most undiplomatic statement ever made".

Musharraf also writes that he was so angered by American demands in the wake of the September 11 attacks, which he calls "ludicrous", that he "war-gamed the United States as an adversary."

"There would be a violent and angry reaction if we didn`t support the United States," an excerpt from his book reads.

"The question was: if we do not join them, can we confront them and withstand the onslaught? The answer was no."

He said that two days after the attacks, the US ambassador to Pakistan Wendy Chamberlain brought to him a set of seven demands including "blanket over flight and landing rights" and "use of Pakistan`s naval ports, air bases, and strategic locations on borders".

Musharraf said Pakistan gave no "blanket permission" for anything.

India`s nuke enrichment tech may be a copy of Pak

Putting the entire blame of Pakistan`s record of nuclear proliferation on disgraced nuclear scientist A Q Khan, Musharraf has alleged that several Indians worked for Khan`s network in Dubai and India`s uranium enrichment technology "could be a copy" of Pakistani centrifuge design.

There is little doubt that A Q was the central figure in the proliferation network but he was assisted over the years by a number of money-seeking freelancers from different countries, Musharraf wrote in his book “ In The Line of Fire� squarely blaming the scientist who recently underwent surgery for prostrate cancer.

While these "freelancers" who included people from Holland, Switzerland, Dubai and Europe, simultaneously pursued their own business independently, "ironically the (Khan`s) network based in Dubai had employed several Indians, some of whom have since vanished," Musharraf wrote in his biography.

"There is a strong probability that the Indian uranium enrichment programme may also have also have roots in the Dubai based network and could a copy of the Pakistani centrifuge design. This has recently alluded to by an eminent American non-proliferation analyst," he said without giving the name of the US analyst.

Sharif displayed lack of statesmanship during Kargil War

In his book `In The Line of Fire`, the General, who was Army Chief during the 1999 conflict, admits that Pakistan had lost ground and Indian Army had achieved success as the intense conflict progressed. He criticises Sharif for agreeing to "unconditional withdrawal" under international pressure.

"On our side, I am ashamed to say, our political leadership insinuated that the achievements of our troops amounted to a `debacle`. As the Chief of Army Staff, I found myself in a very difficult position," he says.

He recalls that he wanted to "explain the military situation, to demonstrate how successful we had been and point out the political mishandling that had caused so much despair. But that would have been disloyal and very unsettling for the political leaders. In desperation, they might do something to destabilise the state system, or to damage the fabric of the Army."

"On our side, our political leadership displayed a total lack of statesmanship and made no serious effort to rally the country," writes Musharraf who is widely believed to be the man behind the Pakistani intrusions that led to a four-month-long conflict.

He notes that "India worked hard to isolate us diplomatically" and that "international pressure had a demoralising effect on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif."

Pointing out differences between the military and the political establishment, Musharraf says that Sharif had asked him several times whether Pakistan should accept a ceasefire and withdraw. "My answer every time was restricted to the optimistic military situation; I left the political decisions to him."

Referring to Sharif`s sudden visit to the US to meet President Bill Clinton, Musharraf recalls "it remains a mystery to me why he was in such a hurry."

Musharraf awaits PM`s `outside the box` solution

President Musharraf says that he is still waiting for the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh`s "outside the box" solution on Jammu and Kashmir.

In his book, the General recalls his first meeting with Singh in New York two years ago and writes that he found the Indian leader to be "a very positive and genuine person" with a desire to resolve disputes with Pakistan.

Two years down the road Musharraf sings a somewhat different tune, and writes, "The initial signs of sincerely and flexibility that I sensed in Manmohan Singh seem to be withering away. I think the Indian establishment --the bureaucrats, diplomats and intelligence agencies and perhaps even the military-- has gotten the better of him."

He has this advice for Singh: "I feel if a leader is to break away from hackneyed ideas and frozen positions, he has to be bold. He has to dominate the establishment, rather than letting it dictate to him".

"I am", he writes, "still waiting for Manmohan Singh`s `outside the box` solution. In the meanwhile, I have initiated many new ideas. We await responses or any counter ideas to solve the dispute over Kashmir without which I strongly believe permanent peace in the region will remain elusive."

No one forced me to join the war on terror: Musharraf

President Musharraf has said he joined the war on terrorism only because it was in the interest of the country and not because someone put a "gun" on his head and forced him into it.

He also denied that he is essentially walking both sides of the line when it comes to fighting terror.

""No, not at all," Musharraf said in an interview on NBC`s "Today Show", responding to a query on whether he was forced to go along with the US in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks.

"That is not the case. It is very clear and explained in the book that we did whatever we did in the interest of Pakistan. I`m not doing anything specifically for the interest of others. Basically, it is in Pakistan`s interest that I took the decision and not -- it`s not the case of somebody pointing the gun on my head or anything," he said.

"Because it`s in Pakistan`s interest, obviously it is -- my heart is in it. The whole nation`s heart is in it... Obviously, I took a deliberate decision. I thought about it. It was a very serious decision that had to be taken. And the main issue that came into my mind was destabilizing a nuclear state and causing such destabilization... To the global environment," he said.