Aziz Ahmed

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Aziz Ahmed (Urdu: عزیز احمد) (born 1906), educated Govt. College, Lahore and Cambridge, was a distinguished member of the Indian Civil Service (ICS) and later Civil Service of Pakistan (CSP) . He served in East Bengal prior to partition (1947) and then became the first Chief Secretary of East Pakistan. He subsequently held several senior positions in successive administrations in newly- independent Pakistan notably Commerce Secretary and Cabinet Secretary. When in 1957, Ayub Khan seized power and declared martial law, Aziz Ahmed was made the highest ranking civil servant in his government and appointed Deputy Martial Law Administrator.

Aziz Ahmed was sent to Pakistan's close ally the United States as Ambassador in 1959 and was instrumental in developing the strong ties between the two countries, that characterised the Eisenhower/Kennedy administrations of the early 60's. He returned in 1963 to take up the post of Foreign Secretary, at a time when Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was the Foreign Minister. He gained further prominence at the national level in Pakistan, following the 1965 war with India. Along with Bhutto, he was opposed to the signing of the Tashkent Declaration, by Ayub Khan.

In 1971, after the fall of East Pakistan and Bhutto taking over as President of Pakistan, Aziz Ahmed was called out of retirement and appointed Secretary General at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. During the ensuing 'Bhutto Era', Aziz Ahmed was regarded as one of his (Bhutto's) ablest and closest advisers, becoming Minister of State for Defence and Foreign Affairs and then Foreign Minister, before the government was toppled in the military coup of 1997. Aziz Ahmed negotiated the Simla Agreement between Pakistan and India in 1972. At the same time, as Minister of State for Defence, he played an important role in re-building Pakistan's defence capability after the '71 war, as well as laying the foundations of the nuclear capability that led to Pakistan's successful nuclear tests in 1998.

Aziz Ahmed remained a staunch opponent of the martial law regime of Gen. Zia-ul-Haq until he died in 1982. He was a recipient of Pakistan's highest civil award, Hilal-e-Pakistan.

He was survived by his wife Shereen Ahmed and two sons and two daughters.


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