Facing prospective impeachment proceedings and under pressure from Pakistan’s new ruling political coalition, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has resigned. “Whether I win or lose the impeachment, the nation will lose,” Musharraf said in an emotional hour long speech carried on Pakistani national television. “They don’t realize they can succeed against me but the country will undergo irreparable damage.” As army chief, Musharraf toppled Pakistan’s president Nawaz Sharif in a coup in 1999, and ruled as head of Pakistan’s powerful military and as the nation’s president for eight years. Under mounting political pressure, he agreed to step down as military chief late last year. It’s not clear who the new president will be. “We will continue to work with the Pakistani government and political leaders and urge them to redouble their focus on Pakistan’s future and its most urgent needs, including stemming the growth of extremism, addressing food and energy shortages, and improving economic stability,” Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in a statement.
