Interview to the Correspondent of the American daily “Christian Science Monitor”, at Rawalpindi, August 2, 1973

President Bhutto said that he would like to feel that there is the same degree of understanding of Pakistan’s concerns in the United States, not only regarding Pakistan’s own defence but also the power configuration in Asia and stability in South Asia.

He said that Pakistan neither needed nor wanted weapons for offensive warfare but it did require possessing a deterrent to potential aggressor. In order to be effective, the deterrent must be credible.

The effort to build one at the present moment would be a great burden on the domestic resources which Pakistan wanted to release for its own economic and social development.

India was receiving a colossal amount of arms and manufacturing a sizeable quantity herself. Pakistan did not manufacture tanks and fighters as India did.

“Pakistan has been the victim of India’s aggression more than once. And yet India protests if Pakistan acquires any military equipment. She protests that a balance is being upset”, the President said.

Commenting on Pakistan-US relations, President Bhutto said that although US-Pakistan relations were cordial it did not mean that there were no areas in which Pakistan would not welcome a more solid appreciation of its position in a human, economic, political and strategic context.

Speaking of his forthcoming US tour, President Bhutto said he would not visit the US to buy or sell a particular proposition but he hoped that there would be an exchange of ideas with the leadership of the US which might lead to a better understanding of the situation in the region in which Pakistan was placed. America’s role in post Vietnam Asia was also certain to be an important topic of conversation.