By Owais Tohid BBC correspondent in Islamabad

Tension was tangible in the Pakistani capital as General Musharraf addressed the nation for the first time since hostilities began mounting again with India.

Vajpayee and Musharraf both want to convince their countrymen they are prepared for war, so when they sit down for talks, it doesn't seem like backing down

Mohammad Ateeq, market trader

One hawker in central Islamabad advertised the newspapers he was selling by shouting "another slap in India's face".

"Pakistan carries out another successful missile test," shouted another teenage boy, brandishing copies of an evening tabloid with pictures of missiles on the front page.

Many here are feeling the strain as tensions mount along on the Line of Control (LoC) which divides the disputed territory of Kashmir valley.

"My heart tells me there is a threat of war, but my brains tell me there can't be a war," says an old bookseller, Mohammad Ateeq, in one of Islamabad's busy markets.

Musharraf: Caught between a rock and a hard place

"No matter how seriously Musharraf is portraying the war threat, America can't afford a war between Pakistan and India.

"Americans need Musharrraf and our country for its war against Osama and his al-Qaeda in Afghanistan," he says.

"Look, Bush has involved Russia for initiating talks between Pakistan and India. I think Vajpayee and Musharraf both want to convince their countrymen they are prepared for war so when they sit down for talks, it doesn't seem like backing down," Mr Ateeq says.

'Mullahs angry'

But many believe Indian Prime Minister Atal Behair Vajpayee has put General Musharraf in a fix.

If they [Indians] strike at us, then we have the atomic bomb

Mohammad Babar, taxi driver

Pakistan's president has already opened too many fronts internally after siding with the international community in its campaign against "terror".

"Musharraf has already made the mullahs angry. They are after his government," says Mohammad Naseem, a student at Quaid-e-Azam University.

"If Musharraf only talks about peace with India, then these people would criticise him, and if he says he is ready for war like Vajpayee then America would pressurise him.

"So Musharraf has to appease both of them. He is talking of peace on one hand and on the other carrying out missile tests every day."

Deterrent

Many think the testing of missiles and Pakistan's nuclear status would prevent a war in future.

We both cannot afford a war - we cannot even have three proper meals a day

Niaz Ahmed, grocer

"If they [Indians] strike at us, then we have the atomic bomb. We are less in numbers, but our atomic bomb is more powerful than the whole population of India," Mohammad Babar, a driver, angrily says.

"Vajpayee can't take Kashmir from us by using force. If they use power, we will use our power."

But Niaz Ahmed, a 70-year-old who makes 150 rupees (less than $3 a day) running a grocery, believes "we both cannot afford a war".

"Both the countries spend billions of rupees on these atmi [nuclear] weapons and here we cannot even have three proper meals a day."