292. Letter From President Johnson to President Ayub1
Dear Mr. President:
Thank your for your letter of January 22,2 which was delivered to me on February 4 shortly before I left for Honolulu. I have greatly admired what you and Prime Minister Shastri did at Tashkent in the cause of peace. It was a remarkable demonstration for all the world to see of how good will and good sense can overcome the dictates of fear and the passion of war.
Neither side lost at Tashkent. Both Pakistan and India have surely gained in the hard work of securing peace on the subcontinent. I well realize that there are those in Pakistan who think Tashkent did not go far enough. But I share your hope that Tashkent will enable both India and Pakistan to turn a new leaf so that there can now be real progress toward removing the differences that have for so long troubled relations between two great friends of the United States.
What has happened since Tashkent leads me to see real basis for this hope. I have been deeply impressed with the way you are seeking to convince your people of this. I am also greatly encouraged by what Mrs. Gandhi has said both publicly and privately about her determination to see that the Tashkent Declaration is carried out.
What you and India can do to keep the spirit of Tashkent alive will greatly affect what we as friends of both countries can do to help. You know how much we cherish the goal of a real peace in South Asia. We will not shirk doing what we can to help bring that about.
As a result of our own discussions and the auspicious developments at Tashkent, I have asked Vice President Humphrey to take up with you certain reciprocal steps which we feel able to take at this juncture.3 I am delighted that he will have the opportunity to visit with you, primarily on events in Southeast Asia. I was greatly heartened by our talks in Honolulu with the leaders of South Viet Nam, and he will want to tell you about what was accomplished there and what more [Page 564] can be done to find a way to bring peace to the people of Viet Nam. In this our determination is undiminished, despite the hostile response from Hanoi.
Mrs. Johnson and I send our warm personal regards.
Sincerely,
- Source: Johnson Library, National Security File, Head of State Correspondence File, Pakistan, Vol. 2, Pres. Ayub Correspondence, 1/1/66–12/25/67. Confidential.↩
- Ayub wrote to Johnson on January 22 to make the point that the popular reaction to the Tashkent agreement in Pakistan bore out Ayub’s contention that the Kashmir issue lay at the heart of the troubled relations between Pakistan and India. Ayub reiterated his opinion that early steps to settle the Kashmir dispute were essential to the establishment of good relations between the two countries. (Ibid.)↩
- Vice President Humphrey was scheduled to arrive in Karachi on February 15, following stops in Saigon and Bangkok. Humphrey visited Pakistan February 15–16; he visited India February 16–17.↩