Arms aid issue may put Nixon in trouble
WASNINGTON, July 20.—U.S. government sources say President Nixon soon will have to face the question of military aid for Pakistan or find Congress has made the decision for him, reports AP.
The Administration has been studying the aid question for three months with no official word on a finding. In fact, the sources say.
Mr. Nixon’s advisers are split among themselves on the politically and diplomatically touchy issue.
The US assistance-economic and military—is officially being “held in abeyance” with arms sales halted from March 25, the date West Pakistani troops moved to crush the independence-movement in Bangladesh.
Since then some ships have sailed for Pakistan carrying military, equipment mostly spare parts sold under licences which, the State Department says were issued before March 25.
But even this relative trickle of equipment has brought on cries at home and abroad the administration is providing the means for West Pakistani troops of massacre the freedom-fighters.
This morality argument is among the points advocated by those Administrati officials who do not favour aid resumption. They also point to diplomatic pitfalls if aid to Pakistan is resumed. A World Bank-led international consortium has recommended no more aid until the millions of Bangladesh refugees, now in India, are allowed to return to their homeland and “reasonable stability” is established there.
Reference: Hindustan Standard 21.07.1971