Friends Not Masters: A Political Autobiography - Ayub Khan

This is a book written by a head of state and head of government when in office and first published in 1967. It is at once an autobiography of former President Mohammad Ayub Khan of Pakistan, and also a description of the major events in the history of Pakistan in which the author participated, and of the problems which the country continue to faces. President Ayub describes his village upbringing in the northwest of undivided India, his years at Aligarh University and Sandhurst in England, and his service in the British-Indian army before and during the Second World War. With the partition of the subcontinent in 1947 and the creation of Pakistan, the author's subject-matter widens to cover the political and military problems he had to deal with as a senior military officer. The major part of the book describes the so-called revolution of 1958, the reforms which the author introduced, and Pakistan's attitude towards India, her other neighbors, and the great powers during his tenure. Of special importance are the chapters on foreign policy explaining the author's reaction to increasing Indian military capability after the Indo-Chinese clashes of 1962. Ayub Khan gives details of his meetings with Mr. Nehru, President Kennedy, and Mr. Kosygin.