AGE: 63
OCCUPATION: President of Pakistan
NUMBER OF TIME COVERS: 0
PREVIOUS APPEARANCES ON THE TIME 100: 1
PRO: Runs a nuclear-armed state infused with all manner of Islamist conflict that is the corporate headquarters of al-Qaeda and the Taliban. It's also a key front of the global jihad and allied efforts to defeat it. Musharraf has positioned himself cannily as the only viable, if not entirely acceptable, leader of a geo-strategically vital tinderbox.
CON: Despite promises, his democratic reforms have been a sham, and his recent suspension of the independent-minded chief justice has brought thousands out onto Pakistan's streets in protest. There are also questions about how much control he has over his military intelligence service, the dreaded ISI. Both allies and neighbors question his commitment to tackling the resurgent Taliban.