[Zhang Fei]

Of course the US needed to give a threat. A great diplomatic maneuver considering that Mushie could have allied with the Taliban and have the support. One scenario is World War 3. Mushie mane the right choice.

Musharraf would have been fine with WWIII. He flew to Beijing to enlist Chinese support against the US, and got the back of their hand. What he feared was to go up against the US alone. Meanwhile the administration position was that "all options are on the table", which may have been directed towards Pakistan and China as much as it was against the Taliban. Pakistan was in no position to survive a nuclear war against India, let alone the US.

[endthematrix]

But it was up to Mushie to escalate the situation and chose not to. IMO, one pivotal moment in history. It would of set us back moderately without logistical help. But if he helped the Taliban...I don't know what the next play for Washington would have been? I doubt airstrikes any any population center. Mushie was our best man at the helm there, and had good recommendations from DoD.