Washington Star/Evening Star

There is no excuse for further delay by the Pakistani government on international offers of aid to the stricken eastern wing of the country. Current reports indicate that there is no effective armed resistance to forces of the national army operating in East Pakistan. The Punjabi troops have done well, by West Pakistani lights, in stopping for the time being the Bengali drive for independence.

The most pressing concern now is the fate of millions of East Pakistanis, whose lives are threatened by the disruption of vital food sources. Rice production in the province has been hit by the fighting, and the internal distribution system is in disarray. At the same time, imports from West Pakistan and from the rest of the world have been stopped since the start of the army crackdown March 25. The main port of Chittagong has handled only military traffic.

Among those who stand the best chance of starving, if the situation is not improved very soon, are 4 million East Pakistanis who have been depending on imported food since the devastating cyclone and flood of last November.

The national government, nevertheless, has stalled on agreeing to many offers of humanitarian help from around the world, several of which have been communicated by United Nations Secretary General Thant. The United States is among the nations that would like to take part in international aid efforts, irrespective of Pakistan's internal or external politics.

There has been reluctance in West Pakistan to acknowledge the enormity of East Pakistan's plight. This undoubtedly is due in large part to sensitivity over the slaughter of Bengali civilians by the army. But there is an unpleasant history of West Pakistani casualness toward suffering in the East. The national government was laggard in responding to last year's disaster, and this added to the Bengalis' bitterness.

The international community, particularly the countries on which Pakistan is more than ever dependent for economic aid, should keep the pressure on Islamabad to permit the humanitarian effort to start before it is too late for those now near death.