From The Past Pages Of Dawn: 1976: Fifty Years Ago: ‘Won’t provoke war’

Published
0

There was no issue of the paper on March 15, 1976, due to the Eid Milad holiday. The excerpt below is taken from the previous day’s edition.

KARACHI: Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto declared here … that Pakistan would never provoke a war against Afghanistan. Pakistan had no dispute with Afghanistan, he told the delegates to the International Cong­ress on Seerat… . On the other hand, it was Af­­­ghanistan which had a dispute with Pakis­tan. [He] said: We have given the facilities to Afghanistan which no other coastal state has given to a landlocked country. Emphasising the need for the solidarity of the Muslim States, he said that intriguers had tried “to cause differences between us and Bangladesh but you know today the people of Bangladesh want complete fraternity and friendship … with Pakistan.” — News agencies

[Meanwhile, as reported by news agencies from Chicago,] President Gerald Ford has said it was necessary for Washington to work with the Arabs while guaranteeing Israel’s existence. He was replying to a question at a talk here before the Chicago Foreign Relations Council. President Ford also warned the Atlantic allies against the possible formation in France or Italy of coalition governments including Communists.

Published in Dawn, March 15th, 2026

Opinion

Editorial

State of denial
Updated 18 Oct, 2026

State of denial

If the Taliban regime commits to preventing groups based on its soil from attacking neighbouring states, the process of normalisation and regional integration of Afghanistan can begin.
Suffering in silence
18 Oct, 2026

Suffering in silence

TOO many Pakistani children have nowhere to turn when abused online. An estimated 1.5m internet-using children aged...
Export imperative
18 Oct, 2026

Export imperative

THE government’s efforts to boost Pakistan’s external sector through diversified financing, higher foreign...
No talks
Updated 17 Oct, 2026

No talks

The government should understand that the PTI’s protest march and its reaction to it will look like nothing more than a storm in a teacup.
Strengthening LGs
17 Oct, 2026

Strengthening LGs

THE ECP has done well to refuse to allow the Punjab administration to push the local government elections to April....
Lesser citizens
Updated 17 Oct, 2026

Lesser citizens

Interfaith harmony will prevail when the message to end bias is conveyed from the pulpit, alongside efforts to punish zealotry.