Indian fighter jets had pounded Pakistani position with relentless ferocity during the 1971 war

The Indian Army fired a sharp rebuttal at the United States following President Donald Trump’s accusations that India is fuelling Russia’s war in Ukraine by purchasing Russian oil. In a move seen as a strategic diplomatic counter, the Indian Army’s Eastern Command shared a historic newspaper clipping dated August 5, 1971, as part of its “This Day That Year” series.

The clipping revealed that from 1954 to 1971, the U.S. had supplied Pakistan with over $2 billion worth of arms, including fighter aircraft, missiles, tanks, submarines, and artillery, often at concessional or “throw-away” prices.

The article quoted then Indian Defence Production Minister VC Shukla informing the Parliament that despite Pakistan’s military crackdown in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), the U.S. continued to provide it with massive arms support, alongside China, while Western allies such as France and the Soviet Union had restricted such supplies.

The Indian Army’s archival post highlighted that the U.S., in the lead-up to the 1971 Indo-Pak war, maintained close military ties with Pakistan, effectively aiding Islamabad at a time when Pakistan was engaged in violent operations and aggression in East Bengal.


The 1971 newspaper also referenced statements by then Pakistan President Yahya Khan warning of war if India intervened in East Pakistan, underscoring the tense military build-up preceding the war that eventually led to the creation of Bangladesh.

This reminder by the Indian Army came shortly after U.S. officials expressed renewed interest in expanding economic cooperation with Pakistan, particularly in its oil sector, and just days after Field Marshal Asim Munir of Pakistan visited the U.S.

The timing and nature of the Indian Army’s post appear as a pointed response to U.S. allegations targeting India’s energy relationship with Russia, emphasizing historical U.S. support for Pakistan’s military as a counter to narratives accusing India of enabling Russian aggression.

The Indian Army’s resurfacing of this 1971 reportage serves as a geopolitical retort underscoring U.S. military alignment with Pakistan during a critical period of South Asian history, while contemporaneously pushing back against recent American criticism of India’s oil imports from Russia. 

This episode illustrates the ongoing complexities in U.S.-India relations, influenced by historical legacies and current strategic economic and diplomatic pressures.

Agencies