Delhi. Aug 8
Mr Andrei Gromyko, the Soviet Foreign Minister, arrived in Delhi today for crucial talks with Indian leaders on the threat of an imminent Indo-Pakistan war.

Mr Gromyko, who will have talks with Mrs Gandhi, the Indian Prime Minister, and Mr Swaran Singh, the Foreign Minister, during his five-day stay in Delhi, spoke of Indo-Soviet friendship at the airport this afternoon but he did not refer to the deepening crisis in the sub-continent.

Unconfirmed reports suggest that Mr Gromyko was persuaded to make an unexpected visit to Delhi to demonstrate Russia's solidarity with India in the light of Indian fears that Pakistan is planning to make a preemptive attack on the western border.

Reliable sources suggest that a senior Bengal officer who defected from East Pakistan recently informed the Indian authorities that President Yahya Khan was planning military action soon to force the international community to intervene.