In a nation generally opposed to Western influence, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf spent nearly seven years working to balance the interests of his people with cooperating with U.S. demands to root out Islamic extremists.

2001 marked a turning point, when Musharraf chose to reverse the country's policy on working closely with the Taliban and not interfering with al-Qaida to aligning with the United States in its war on terror.

Musharraf's subsequent decisions gained him the nickname "Busharraf" and a hailstorm of criticism from Pakistanis.

But the bond between the United States and Pakistan produced $10 billion in aid from the United States since 2002, and Musharraf has been one of the strongest U.S. allies in the hunt for members of al-Qaida.

"These few religious extremists ... destroyed the international image of Pakistan and we were projected as a very backward country," Musharraf said in a January 2002 policy speech.

Despite winning re-election on Oct. 6, 2007, regional experts and analysts said he seemed to be losing his mooring, and he provoked international criticism for declaring a six-week state of emergency later that year because of rising violence and political instability. The move mobilized former officials Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif and other opposition leaders to try to oust Musharraf in subsequent general elections.

"This is a person with steadily declining power and authority and there is no way to really recapture that," said George Perkovich, who overseas the South Asia Project at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "Over time his clarity of purpose got lost."

As a result of the growing opposition and international calls for him to step down as army chief, Musharraf turned over his military command to Gen. Ashfaq Kayani on Nov. 28, 2007, a day before he was sworn in as president for a second five-year term.

And then the following year, a newly elected Parliament filled with opposition party members began taking steps to impeach Musharraf. But before they could, he announced his resignation in August 2008.

Taking power
Pakistan had been under military rule for more than half of its 60 years, but Musharraf's role as army chief and president was unique.

He came to power in 1999, after a 17-hour bloodless coup set off by a showdown with then-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

A rift with Sharif grew when Musharraf oversaw the capture of an area on the Indian side of the line of control.

On Oct. 12, 1999, Musharraf was on a commercial plane from Sri Lanka back to Karachi after hearing Sharif had plans for his removal. Sharif signed Musharraf's dismissal papers while he was in flight and announced Musharraf's "retirement."

The army then dispatched forces to Islamabad in support of Musharraf.

Sharif ordered the plane not to land in Karachi, so that Musharraf could be arrested at a small airport and dealt with at his discretion.

Suspicious of the change in course, Musharraf entered the cockpit and forced the pilot to circle Karachi until they could land, as army supporters continued to carry out the coup and secure his safety.

After taking control, Musharraf proclaimed himself chief executive then suspended the constitution and the parliament. The change was generally accepted among Pakistanis who were tired of Sharif's 11-year rule.

"People didn't lament Nawaz Sharif 's passing, and some said, 'Let's give Musharraf a chance,'" said Perkovich. "He was a benign dictator in the beginning."

The Supreme Court ruled in 2000 that his government was constitutional and imposed a three-year deadline for democratic civilian rule. Musharraf promised new elections in 2002.

Putting off democracy
But democracy did not come. In June 2001, Musharraf declared himself president, while remaining head of the army, prompting an uproar from opposition party leaders.

"The dictator has come up with his real face. His intention is to cling to power," Reza Rabbani, a leader of Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party, told the BBC in June 2001.

Within the year, the new president had made his promise to the United States to fight extremism, and been embroiled in an armed conflict and nuclear stand-off with India over the disputed territory of Kashmir and terrorist attacks on the India parliament.

Before the conflict was resolved in mid-2002, Musharraf held a referendum in April to extend his tenure as president by five years.

He was successful, but his opponents and international political experts decried the referendum as a charade and said it was rigged. Later that year, he granted himself new powers, including the right to dismiss the parliament and the prime minister.

"It gave him these unlimited powers, establishing a one person, all powerful presidency that was never approved by any elected body," said Andersen.

Musharraf expanded the military's role in the government in 2004 when a National Security Council he was pushing for finally got parliamentary approval. In December of that year, he failed to deliver on a promise to the Islamic opposition to relinquish his role in the military.

"I have decided to retain both offices," Musharraf said in a nationwide television address. "In my view, any change in internal or external policies can be extremely dangerous."

Violence escalates
Despite the military's expanded role, the violence enveloping the tribal lands on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border known to harbor Islamic extremists became too much too handle in 2006.

Pressure over loss of civilian lives and the deaths of hundreds of soldiers prompted Pakistan's government to end operations in the areas in September of 2006 and give power to tribal leaders in Waziristan.

Then, Musharraf suspended Chief Justice Iftakar Mohammed Chaudhry in March 2007, launching riots and demonstrations. The Supreme Court rejected Musharraf's decision and reinstated Chaudhry several months later.

In a move that further ostracized Pakistan's Islamist supporters, Pakistani army commanders seized Islamabad's Red Mosque in July 2007, forcing the surrender of clerics, militants and students holed up inside. Nearly 100 people were killed.

After a successful re-election bid, the Supreme Court considered challenges to his candidacy as army chief. Musharraf again removed Chaudhry, and a reshaped high court dismissed the challenges in November 2007, clearing the way for his second term.

A short time into that second term, however, Musharraf faced growing calls for a confidence vote in parliament, as the Pakistan Peoples Party and Pakistan Muslim League-N prepared charges of abuse of office to present at impeachment proceedings.

Rather than go through impeachment proceedings, Musharraf announced his resignation on Aug. 18, 2008 during an address to the nation that ended with the words: "May God protect Pakistan, may God protect you all. Long live Pakistan forever."

-- By Talea Miller, Online NewsHour