PESHAWAR: President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto said here today [Nov 16] that recognition of Bangladesh was in the supreme national interest and would not mean compromising our principles. Speaking at a citizen’s reception, the President made it clear that he would not tolerate any movement against recognition. “We know how to crush these movements,” he said, adding that the people will themselves look after it. He said: “Unless we make important decisions at the right moment, the ship of the country cannot be steered to prosperity. We have to take these decisions, and quickly, because the time we are losing will bring more and more losses to the people.” The President asked the opponents of BD recognition to come and have talks with him and convince him of their viewpoint. — Staff correspondent

[Meanwhile, as reported by news agencies in New York,] President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto has said that meetings between the representatives of Pakistan and Bangladesh in New York had “drawn a blank” and Islamabad’s recognition of Dacca was “as remote as ever”. In an interview with Lewis M. Simons of the “Washington Post” in Rawalpindi on Nov 13, the President also touched on relations with India saying that the situation “defies solution”.

Published in Dawn, November 17th, 2022