Indian Army's 'US shipped arms to Pakistan' dig amid criticism over oil imports from Russia
PTC News Desk: Amid ongoing squabble between India and the US over oil imports from Russia and subsequent tariff threats, the Indian Army on Tuesday took a sharp dig at the US over its weapon supply to Pakistan in 1971.
The Indian Army shared an old clip from 1971 showing how the country has supported Pakistan for decades. The clip, shared by the Eastern Command of the Indian Army, dated back to August 5, 1971. It showed how the US was supplying arms to Pakistan for decades in the buildup for the 1971 war. "This day, that year build up of war - August 5, 1971," the army captioned the post.
#IndianArmy#EasternCommand#VijayVarsh #LiberationOfBangladesh #MediaHighlights
"This Day That Year" Build Up of War - 05 Aug 1971 #KnowFacts.
"????.???? ???????????????? ???????????????????? $2 ???????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????? ???????? ???????????????????????????????? ???????????????????? '54"@adgpi@SpokespersonMoD… pic.twitter.com/wO9jiLlLQf — EasternCommand_IA (@easterncomd) August 5, 2025
A newspaper clipping cited then Defence Production Minister V.C. Shukla informing the Rajya Sabha that NATO countries and the Soviet Union had been approached regarding arms supplies to Pakistan amid Islamabad’s military actions in Bangladesh. While both the Soviet Union and the French government denied providing weapons to Pakistan, the report stated that the United States continued its military support. It further noted that both the U.S. and China supplied arms to Pakistan at “throwaway prices,” suggesting that Pakistan fought the 1971 war against India using weapons largely provided by those two nations.
Even today, the U.S. maintains a lenient stance toward Pakistan when it comes to trade tariffs.
In his recent push to restructure global trade in favour of American interests, President Donald Trump signed an executive order imposing increased tariffs on numerous countries—just hours before the August 1 trade deal deadline. However, Pakistan saw a reduction in tariffs, with rates being lowered from 29 percent to 19 percent.
- With inputs from agencies
