had its power base in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). Disagreement broke out between the Awami League leadership and Peoples Party leadership, which was the second largest party in the elections after the Awami League. The Pakistani military, under the orders of general Tikka Khan, used gunfire for almost a week to gain control of East Pakistan's capital and largest city Dhaka. Tikka Khan also targeted the Hindu population in East Pakistan. This led to a mass exodus of mostly Hindu Bengalis, who fled to India. The Indian government, under the leadership of Indira Gandhi, saw itself confronted with a major humanitarian catastrophe, as eight to ten million Bengalis fled from East Pakistan to overcrowded and underfunded refugee camps in India. Indira Gandhi decided in April that a war was needed to stop the exodus and force millions of Bengali refugees return to their homes. The Indian government desired to get involved in the Bangladesh Liberation War to engage the Pakistani military and aid the Mukti Bahini in separating East Pakistan from the federation. However, the Pakistani leadership was very well connected, as Yahya Khan had a close personal friendship with American President Richard Nixon and harboured excellent diplomatic relations with Mao's China. Under these circumstances, Gandhi was very nervous to send an army to East Pakistan. To her relief, the Soviet leadership was open to negotiations. The ensuing Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation, signed in August 1971, was very loose, but sent a strong signal to Washington and Beijing. The treaty was a strong additional incentive for Nixon and Mao to pursue their planned meeting, which took place in February 1972. Eventually, since Nixon needed Brezhnev to end the Vietnam War, frictions between both superpowers were streamlined, which paved the way for the immensely important summit that was convened in Moscow in May 1972. The Soviet Union, now an Indian ally, also intervened in the civil war in Pakistan on behalf of India. After Cold War References Bibliography . . . Menon, Rajan. "India and Russia." in David Malone et al eds. The Oxford Handbook of Indian Foreign Policy (2015) pp 509-521. 1971 in India 1971 in the Soviet Union August 1971 events in Asia August 1971 events in Europe Cold War treaties Bilateral treaties of India Treaties of the Soviet Union Treaties concluded in 1971 Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 India–Soviet Union relations