He is notable for his appointment that saw his involvement during the war with India in 1971 when the Soviet Union directed a secret message to PresidentYahya Khan to come up with a peaceful political settlement for the East Pakistan to avoid going through the conflict with India.[1] The now-declassified Rodionov message ultimately warned Pakistan that "it will [be] embarking [on] a suicidal course if it escalates tensions in the subcontinent."[2]: part-3
Rodionov reportedly had an acrimonious meeting with President Yahya Khan a week after the Indo-Soviet treaty was signed.[3] During his tenure, the Soviet Union's relations with Yahya Khan had met with demise but he worked towards repairing relations with Bhutto in 1971 when he lobbied in the Soviet Union for the establishment of the Pakistan Steel Mills.[4] On 24 January 1972, he delivered an official invitation to then-President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto In Karachi to pay a state visit to Soviet Union that took place in 1974.[4] In 1974, Rodionov was recalled from his posting as Soviet ambassador to Pakistan in order to take up other duties. Soviet Ambassador Sarvar Azimov had succeeded him who stayed until 1980.[5][6]
^Service, British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring (1971). Summary of World Broadcasts: Far East. London, UK: Monitoring Service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 22 December 2016.
