Blaming the western media for many of his woes, President Pervez Musharraf [Images] has said that he was ready to "work" with opposition leader Benazir Bhutto [Images] if she wins the January vote, but remained non-committal on lifting a ban on her becoming the premier for the third time.

"When you talk of working with her, you imply she is going to be the prime minister. Why do you imply that? I keep telling everyone we haven't had the elections," Musharraf, who lifted emergency on Saturday, said.

Asked if he could work with her if she got enough votes, he replied, "Yes, of course. I think so. I am not such an unpleasant person."

On the lifting of a third term ban for Bhutto, Musharraf said he had made no such promise to the US.

"We will decide on that once they win the vote," he told The Wasington Post and Newsweek in an interview to be published on Sunday.

"The problem with the West and your media is your obsession with democracy, civil liberties, human rights. You think your definition of all these things is correct," Musharraf said when asked whether he felt that he had stuck his neck out for the United States which has not "stood" by him.

Defending the imposition of emergency and curbs on media, he said, "The Western media was undermining what (we) are doing. Your media keeps criticising the army and the Inter Services Intelligence -- not understanding what their real contribution is to fighting terrorism.