In March 1972,

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Zulfikar (or Zulfiqar) Ali Bhutto ( ur, , sd, ذوالفقار علي ڀٽو; 5 January 1928 – 4 April 1979), also known as Quaid-e-Awam ("the People's Leader"), was a Pakistani barrister, politician and statesman who served as the fourt ...

, president of

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

, visited the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

to help normalize formal relations between the two countries. Bhutto engaged in substantive discussions with Soviet leaders in Moscow, including meeting with Chairman

Alexei Kosygin Alexei Nikolayevich Kosygin ( rus, Алексе́й Никола́евич Косы́гин, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej nʲɪkɐˈla(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ kɐˈsɨɡʲɪn; – 18 December 1980) was a Soviet statesman during the Cold War. He served as the Premi ...

and

Secretary-General Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...

Leonid Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev; uk, links= no, Леонід Ілліч Брежнєв, . (19 December 1906– 10 November 1982) was a Soviet politician who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union between 1964 and ...

. Even before being elected on a

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

platform in 1971, Bhutto had spoken of the necessity of independent foreign policy and stronger relations with the Soviet Union, which had been fractured during the direct war with

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and the Indo-Soviet Treaty. The meeting was marked as a reconciliation between the states and as a restoration of industrial co-operation. It also signaled a wider shift towards an independent foreign policy, in particular to reduce Pakistan's dependence on the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. Held from 2 March till 5 March 1972, the meeting also strengthened trade between the two states. Trade was increased from 36.2 million ''

ruble The ruble (American English) or rouble (Commonwealth English) (; rus, рубль, p=rublʲ) is the currency unit of Belarus and Russia. Historically, it was the currency of the Russian Empire and of the Soviet Union. , currencies named ''rub ...

s'' (''Рубль'') to 92.3 million ''rubles''. The repercussions of Bhutto's visit were vast, including the ₨.4.5 billion worth of

Pakistan Steel Mills The Pakistan Steel Mills Corporation, colloquially referred to as ''Pak Steels'', is a Pakistan-based company that produces long-rolled steel and heavy metal products in the country. Headquartered in Karachi, Sindh, the PSMC is currently the l ...

established in

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...

, the Guddo Thermal Power Plant, and Pakistan's official departure from the

Southeast Asia Treaty Organization The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) was an international organization for collective defense in Southeast Asia created by the Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty, or Manila Pact, signed in September 1954 in Manila, the Philipp ...

(SEATO) and the

Central Treaty Organization The Middle East Treaty Organization (METO), also known as the Baghdad Pact and subsequently known as the Central Treaty Organization (CENTO), was a military alliance of the Cold War. It was formed in 24 February 1955 by Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Turk ...

(CENTO). In 1974, Bhutto again visited Moscow as part of a goodwill mission, aimed at strengthening ties.. That visit yielded mixed results: the Pakistan Steel Mills were established and inaugurated in 1985; however, the closer ties with China, difficulties with

and

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

, and the discovery of Soviet arms negatively impacted relations between

and

. Relations between the two countries would quickly sour after Bhutto was deposed and executed by the pro-American General

Zia ul Haq General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq HI, GCSJ, ร.ม.ภ, (Urdu: ; 12 August 1924 – 17 August 1988) was a Pakistani four-star general and politician who became the sixth President of Pakistan following a coup and declaration of martial law in ...

, who aligned Pakistan with the US in support of the Afghan Mujahideen to resist the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979–1988.

References

Media archives

*{{cite web, title=Z.A. Bhutto in Moscow 1972, url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OhvRoBDRIr4, publisher=PTV archives, accessdate=28 April 2015 1972 in Pakistan 1972 in the Soviet Union Pakistan–Soviet Union relations 1972 in international relations Government of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto History of the foreign relations of Pakistan State visits by Pakistani leaders March 1972 events in Europe Diplomatic visits by heads of state

References

Further reading

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