USSR ‘no’ UN meet on ‘Indo-Pak tension’
UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 19. (AP)-The Soviet ambassador to the United Nations. Mr. Viktor Issraelyan, had told the Secretary-General, U Thant, that his country is against having a Security Council meeting on the India-Pakistan tension, according to diplomatic sources here.
The acting head of the Soviet mission contended the root of the tension was Pakistan’s domestic problem and it was for Pakistan to solve it by creating conditions for the return of the Bangladesh refugees to their homeland, the sources said.
U Thant had sent the Council a note suggesting that it do something about a “potential threat to peace.” He said it was latent in the situation in the Indian sub-continent.
Diplomatic sources said here the Pakistani move to get the UN and its concillation machinery to play an informal role and make the Bangladesh problem jnto an India-Pakistan issue appear to have failed so far.
The sources said Pakistan had wanted the Security Council or its members to agree “informally” to send the conciliation group to narrow the India-Pakistan differences. But the move had failed because of the Soviet Union’s rejection of such “informal moves” and the awarencess of others that such moves without the Security Council meetings cannot be a success. Once the Security Council convenes, it would be difficult to avoid tackling the core of the Bangladesh problem either.
Meanwhile. Mr. John Salzberg, the representative of the International Commission of Jurists, said last night that he did not find much support on Monday to his proposal that the sub-commission appeal to the military junta of Pakistan to stop the secret trial of Awami League Leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
Reference: Hindustan Standard 20.08.1971