Mr.Zardari, whose country is battling Taliban forces along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan, noted,through a translator, the region is suffering from major "geopolitical problems".

VOA: standard.2009.05.24

They were asked to name a leader that could best handle Pakistan's problems, and 32 percent went for Pakistan People's Party Vice Chairman Makhdom Amin Fahim, and 14 percent chose Bhutto's son, Bilawal, who is the official party leader.

CNN: Polls: Musharraf, al Qaeda losing support

Pakistan's problems are complicated by its testing of atomic weapons in May, two weeks after India conducted similar explosions.

CNN: Bracing for a Default

It would be easy to blame Pakistan's problems on East Asia's financial troubles.

ECONOMIST: Pakistan