India, Pak., Bangla sign historic Accord

New Delhi, April 9: The Foreign Ministers of India, Bangladesh and Pakistan tonight signed the firstever tripartite agreement, at the end of five days of arduous negotiations, thus bringing to a successful fruition the talks which at one stage looked like ending in stalemate. India and Pakistan also concluded a separate bilateral agreement for initiating the immediate resumption of postal and telecommunication links and travel facilities. While details of the tripartite agreement will be released simultaneously tomorrow evening in the capitals of the three countries, it is by now clear that the 195 POWS charged with war crimes and awaiting trial in Bangladesh, will be freed.

Any indication to this effect was given by Mr. Aziz Ahmed. Pakistan’s Foreign Minister said much of the success of the conference was due to the “farsightedness’ of the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. In a brief speech after signing the agreement, Mr. Ahmed said that the tripartite talks would not have succeeded but for the statesmanship shown by the three Prime Ministers, “the biggest contribution was made by the Prime Minister of Bangladesh.” A common point that was stressed by all three leaders was that peace in the subcontinent was vital for the progress of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and they were confident that the agreement marked a significant step in that direction. Mr. Swaran Singh said this was the firstever agreement signed by India, Bangladesh and Pakistan and as such it was a historic document. He was confident that an era of peace would commence and the tribulations and difficulties they encountered earlier would be a thing of the past.