The Kashmir issue would "most likely" be resolved by the yearend, Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf said on Thursday.

Addressing the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir Assembly in Muzaffarabad to mark the 'Kashmir Solidarity Day', Musharraf said the Indo-Pak dialogue process scheduled to begin later this month was expected to pick up steam after the Indian elections.

He said he would prefer to leave power rather than compromise on the Kashmir issue.

He criticised the "opportunists" in Pakistan who said he was heading for a sell-out on Kashmir.

The general said anyone compromising on the Kashmir issue and missile programme would be a "traitor".

Musharraf said he decided to address the assembly instead of Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali to make a detailed presentation on the events leading to the thaw in Indo-Pak ties and the agreement between the two countries to begin the dialogue process.

About his comments in an interview that Pakistan was ready to drop the demand for UN resolutions on Kashmir, the general said he was quoted out of context.

He said Pakistan could show flexibility on Kashmir provided the talks reached a stage where both sides could discuss solution.

"I said if the dialogue process begins, if Kashmir is discussed, if there is progress on talks to find solution, we should show flexibility and come out of stated positions," he said.