52. Telegram From the Embassy in Bangladesh to the Department of State1
2108. Subject: Letter to President Carter From President Ziaur Rahman on Hostage Crisis.
1. C–Entire text.
2. BDG Foreign Secretary Kibria on April 15 handed Ambassador a letter to President Carter from President Ziaur Rahman. Kibria asked Ambassador to send letter to Washington and noted that letter would also be handed over by BDG Embassy in Washington.
3. Text of letter is as follows:
14 April 1980
Dear Mr. President,
As we celebrate our New Year’s Day our friends abroad are naturally in our thoughts. On behalf of the people of Bangladesh and on my own behalf it gives me great pleasure to send you our warm greetings on this happy occasion and wish the friendly people of the United States of America continued progress and prosperity.
It is, indeed, a matter of satisfaction to us that our two countries are bound by close ties of friendship based on mutual understanding, shared democratic and human values and similarity of views on many of the international issues. We sincerely hope that these ties will grow still stronger during the year ahead.
Mr. President, as you, of course, know, we in Bangladesh attach great importance to peace and stability because peace and stability are a pre-requisite for progress in achieving our objectives of economic and social development and raising the quality of life of our people. We, therefore, view with great concern some of the recent developments in our region. Armed occupation of a small non-aligned South Asian country by a great power and earlier a similar military intervention in Indo-China indicate a growing disregard for the basic principles of the U.N. Charter and pose a serious threat to the security of small states and also global peace and stability. Bangladesh, therefore, took a firm stand against such foreign interventions in the Security Council, at the United Nations General Assembly and also at the extraordinary [Page 135] session of the Islamic Foreign Ministers’ Conference held recently in Islamabad.2
In the circumstances, Bangladesh is naturally disturbed at the continuing impasse over Iran-U.S. relations. We consider an early resolution of this problem as an imperative for peace and security in our region. We have, therefore, been making all possible endeavours in this direction at various levels. Guided by our commitment to international law and conventions we consistently stood for the release of the American diplomatic personnel detained in Tehran. We are continuing our efforts in seeking a peaceful and honourable solution of this problem keeping in view the realities of the situation.
Recently, I have addressed a personal message to President Bani Sadr underscoring the necessity of an early solution of this problem in the interest of peace and security in our region.3 With a view to initiating a movement in this direction, I have suggested a number of steps, such as the transfer of the American hostages to the custody of the government and allowing the heads of Missions to visit them. In this connection, I have also stressed that such action would also be in the fine tradition of Islam and contribute in easing the present tension and leading to an early resolution of the problem.
While looking forward to a favourable response from the Iranian President, we are also consulting like-minded Islamic countries with a view to a possible initiative at the forthcoming Islamic Conference for finding a speedy and peaceful solution.
I wish you, Mr. President, good health and success.
With kind personal regards,
Yours sincerely,
(Ziaur Rahman)
[Page 136]4. Account of meeting at which Kibria presented letter follows by septel.4
- Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, D800188–0528. Confidential; Immediate; Exdis.↩
- See Document 51.↩
- Telegram 2109 from Dacca, April 15, noted that “Zia’s letter to Bani Sadr is the result of a proposal made to him by K. M. Kaiser and of efforts Kaiser has been making at my urging to remedy the damage to U.S.-Bangladesh relations caused by previous faint support to the U.S. on the hostage issue.” (National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, D800188–0527)↩
- Telegram 2114 from Dacca, April 15, described Schneider’s April 14 meeting with Kibria, during which he informed Schneider that “BDG Ambassador in Tehran, Humayan Kabir, has been very active and has secured access to some second-echelon members of Revolutionary Council. Through these contacts on the Council, BDG Ambassador has attempted to have certain points brought to attention of Khomeini—although not always successfully, Kibria acknowledged.” Kibria also reported Bangladeshi efforts at consulting Islamic countries on “the need to find a solution to the Iran crisis.” The Embassy commented: “We believe this initiative reflects two recently heightened BDG concerns: A) a realization that its unhelpfulness was causing lasting and increasing irritation within USG, and B) genuine concern over the effect of intensification of the crisis on the Islamic world and its relations with the West.” (National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, D800188–0553)↩