The Prince, who will be accompanied by the Duchess of Cornwall, wanted to avoid a repeat of the suffocating measures imposed during President Bush’s visit in March. The capital, Islamabad, was turned into a ghost town as police and troops kept traffic and pedestrians off the streets.

Known activists are already being rounded up before the Prince’s arrival at the weekend. While Mr Bush barely moved outside the presidency building and the nearby US Embassy during his 24 hours in the capital, the Prince told officials that he wished to meet locals and be seen by the public.

But General Musharraf is so concerned about a terrorist attack during the week-long royal visit that he is vetoing the Prince’s wishes and imposing unprecedented security levels. One fear is that militants may strike a Western target in another city to generate publicity.

The Prince insisted on visiting a number of cities rather than remain in the diplomatic quarter of Islamabad. He and the Duchess will use a helicopter with anti-aircraft batteries installed around landing sites.

The Prince asked to visit the disputed area in the north, ravaged by last year’s earthquake, where more than 80,000 died. He has taken an interest in relief work there after British charities raised millions in aid.

A strict exclusion zone will be enforced at every destination, which will mean a ban on all vehicles and pedestrians.

The security for President Bush prompted anger at the confusion and delay that it caused in an already chaotic city. The worries about security were heightened after Taleban insurgents in southern Afghanistan said that they would extend their attacks to Western interests abroad. One Taleban warlord, Mullah Muhammad Amin, boasted in a recent interview that he had fighters sheltering in Pakistan with a stockpile of weaponry and expertise in roadside bombs.

Thousands of extra paramilitary and police have been drafted into Islamabad. “We are taking every measure to make the security foolproof,” a Pakistani Foreign Ministry official said. The visit, the first by the Prince and the Duchess as a couple, is going ahead despite a warning by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of a high terrorist threat throughout the country.

The capital was placed on a high security alert last week after another failed assassination attempt against General Musharraf. This month Pakistani security agencies arrested about a dozen suspected militants believed to be involved in a foiled terrorist plot to target the President. The detailed schedule of the royal couple’s trip has been kept secret but there is concern that their whereabouts will become known by the time they arrive.

In Islamabad their activities will be restricted to a two-mile (3.2km) radius that houses government offices and the diplomatic enclave.

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