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Pak's plan for local election positive but not enough: US

The United States welcomed Thursday an announcement by Pakistan's military ruler General Pervez Musharraf that he would hold local elections next year, but said the move alone would not suffice.

"It is a positive step. However, what we are looking for is a roadmap to the national elections and a return to democratic rule," Joe Lokchart, White House spokesman, who is accompanying US President Bill Clinton in a state visit to India, said in Jaipur.

Musharraf's pledge came just two days before Clinton's scheduled visit to Pakistan, where he is expected to press for a return to democracy.

Musharraf said he was not concerned about international criticism of the slow pace of return to democractic rule.

"I am doing everything in the national interest. I do not need approval from anyone. Nobody will dictate anything to us," he told a press conference.

Clinton is set to visit Pakistan at the end of his South Asian tour on Saturday.

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