Bangladesh Reaction
By a Staff Reporter, Mr. Khondaker Mostaque Ahmed, Foreign Minister of the Bangladesh Government in a statement from Mujibnagar on Saturday Welcomed the proposed visit to China by President Nixon and said it was two Big Powers to make up their differences and would go a long way to ease world tension.
PTI adds: Mr. M. Hossain Ali, head of the Bangladesh Mission in Calcutta, said if the equilibrium in the world were distributed by Mr. Nixon’s proposed visit to China it might lead to a situation where the small Powers might suffer.
Mr. Hossain Ali told a meeting of the All India Small Newspapers Association at the Calcutta Press Club that China was a potential superpower and it was necessary that the world should come to terms with China. But how it would affect the strategies of the Big Powers towards small countries was rather difficult to say.
Prof. Mazharul Islam leader of the Bangldesh teachers delegation said at a Press conference at Bhopal: “China has been opposing the Bangldesh movement and you know the role of the USA.” The Bangladesh people did not expect anything from them.
Prof. Islam also described as “Unfortunate” the lukewarm attitude of the Arab countries toward the Bangladesh movement. Maybe it was because most of these nations were “Kingdoms under Sultanates or autocracts” the sympathies went with Pakistan.
Reference: Hindustan Standard, 18.07.1971