Ambassador Khan illuminates various aspects of the personalities of Ayub Khan, Yahya Khan, ZA Bhutto, and many other prominent figures with whom he interacted - Flickr
Memories of a Noble Diplomat
By C. Naseer Ahmad
Washington, DC
Courageous diplomats don’t often get appreciated in life, and sometimes never. This is because diplomacy by nature is not conducted through attention-grabbing emotional outbursts or bluster; instead, it requires painstaking preparation, listening, and communicating one’s position cogently. Diplomats are not known for banging their fists or shoes on conference tables and the countries they represent may never know the risks they take to defend national interests. Nor would the world know the important role they might have played in burying animosities between nations.
Twenty-five years have passed since the publication of “Memories and Reflections of a Pakistani Diplomat” by late Ambassador Sultan Muhammed Khan. From the first few sentences to the very last page, the book emanates honesty, forthrightness, and dignity that one found in Ambassador Khan in person. Each page keeps the reader absorbed wanting to know more in the succeeding page and the ones to follow until the end.
From his book, Ambassador Khan comes across as an excellent storyteller, which for any diplomat is a necessity in order to advocate effectively for the country being represented. Ambassador Khan’s story begins from Jaora, a princely state in India. Nobility was in his blood, being born to the brother of Nawab of Jaora. Ambassador Khan became an orphan when his parents passed away while he was a young boy. But caring relatives helped ensure that he received the best education they could afford.
Ambassador Khan possessed an enormous capacity to listen, which is important not just in diplomatic negotiation but also in life. As a reader you will learn about this when he described his army days. You will also learn that he could think for himself when he decided against becoming a princeling and continued the path of becoming an army officer.
Judgement is essential is effective diplomacy. Ambassador Khan was tested early in his army career immediately after World War II when as an officer he resisted reimposition of Dutch rule in Indonesia after the Japanese surrender. For one, he would have faced mutiny amongst his soldiers many of whom were Muslims who were not eager to restore colonial rule over fellow Muslims in Indonesia.
Without the ability to tell unvarnished truth, no diplomat would be taken seriously. Chapter after chapter, there are very interesting incidents covered, some revealing and some dispelling rumors.
His first diplomatic assignment was in New Delhi during the height of communal violence. He wrote an eyewitness account of seeing Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru beating up looters one night. Considering that Nehru is not a favorite personality in Pakistan, this was an act of courage. In later chapters, Ambassador Khan wrote about several times when he had a difference of opinion with the Pakistani presidents he was serving under. Ambassador Khan recorded his dissenting opinion numerous times in the book. In each instance, he wrote how he stated his position and made a sincere attempt to change a policy or a course of action.
In none of the situations Ambassador Khan described did he cast aspersions on those he did not agree with. The following two examples are applicable in this context. On the eve of the ill-fated 1971 Indo-Pakistan conflict which led to the creation of Bangladesh and in the last-ditch effort to sway the Soviet Union towards a neutral position, he embarked on a diplomatic mission to Moscow. Writing about a tense dialogue with Prime Minister Alexei Kosygin, Ambassador Khan gave a detailed account – free from any prejudices - of what each person said.
Another example is a contentious episode during Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s 1973 US visit. During this visit, one of the officials had an optimistic view about the resumption of arms supplies and food aid while Ambassador Khan was not. “I’ll be the happiest man if my assessment is proved wrong because a positive American response will be in the interest of Pakistan, but Mr Prime Minister do not count on that too much,” said Ambassador Khan without a whiff of anger or resentment.
In his book, Ambassador Khan illuminated various aspects of the personalities of Ayub Khan, Yahya Khan, Bhutto, and many other prominent figures with whom he interacted. They come across being human with many likable qualities as well as weaknesses. There was a common perception about Yahya Khan’s drunkenness in general but particularly during a celebratory trip to Iran in 1971. According to Ambassador Khan’s notes, Yahya Khan was in control of his mental faculties during the infamous 2,500 celebration of the Persian Empire. In fact, there was a substantive discussion between Yahya Khan and Soviet President Nikolai Podgorny. Bhutto, on the other hand, comes out as mean and petty, notwithstanding his sharp intellect and political vision.
Few people will know how tenuous Sino-Pak relations were during the 1950s and early 1960s. It took the skill of diplomats like Ambassador Khan and General Raza before him to lay the foundations of the strong ties that exist between the two countries today. Not many would realize that Beijing (then Peking) was a hardship post; diplomats flew to Hong Kong and took a long train ride to Beijing.
People all over the world these days are accustomed to products produced cheaply in China. This would not have happened without the behind-the-scenes diplomatic work by Ambassador Khan and his team. Afterall, it was Ambassador Khan who drove Dr Henry Kissinger to the airport in his son’s car around 4am for the secret trip to China, which unleashed the series of events benefitting humanity today.
A Google search of the name Chou En-lai will likely produce some photographs and a few hyperlinks. But a comprehensive picture of this battle-hardened wise leader comes only from reading Ambassador Khan’s narration of the challenges faced and the navigation through troubled waters of the destructive 1960s Cultural Revolution in China while continuing the effort to build Sino-Pak ties which became the important avenue for the reopening of China to the modern world.
The book clearly is the story of the life of a dedicated public servant who gave every ounce of his energy in the service of his country. It is the story of a man who found opportunities where ordinary people only saw obstacles. In pursuing the opportunities, Ambassador Khan saw doors open and previously unfamiliar people open their homes and give him a place in their hearts. In short, the book reveals an extraordinary noble life lived with dignity, pizazz and old fashioned hard work.
In writing this wonderful book, Ambassador Khan has left the world with an enduring gift. It is for the curious reader hungry for knowledge and those in search for facts to discover the treasures hidden in plain sight. And those interested in pursuing a career in the art of diplomacy might want to have this book by their bedside.
For the brief times I met Ambassador Khan, it was at our mutual friend General Roland delMar’s farmhouse in rural Maryland on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter Holidays. But those who had lasting friendships with Ambassador Khan tell me that he “ was a remarkable person and had all the qualities you mentioned and more.” And today Ambassador Khan is missed more than ever before.
