Nawaz Sharif calls for US shift

Nawaz Sharif is a longtime opponent of President Musharraf

The former Pakistani prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, says the United States should do more to work with the newly-elected parliament.

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Sharif said President Pervez Musharraf was no longer a key figure for the US.

He added that personal friendship between President Bush and President Musharraf should not hamper relations between the two countries.

Mr Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League is part of the coalition government.

He is a longtime opponent of the President, who ousted him from power in a military coup in 1999.

Speaking of President Musharraf, Mr Sharif told the BBC: "He doesn't have any support in Washington, maybe a few people in the administration still think that he should be allowed to stay as president, whether he can do anything or not."

He added: "But I think he's lost his writ to a very great extent, he has outlived his utility for anything, and the present US administration must know that if they have to work, they have to work with the elected parliament, the elected government."

Mr Sharif also spoke about the disgraced nuclear scientist, Abdul Qadeer Khan, who is credited with developing Pakistan's first nuclear bomb.

Mr Sharif said he didn't see any evidence of proliferation while he was in office.

In 2004, Mr Khan admitted to transferring nuclear secrets to foreign countries.

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