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INDIA-US
SECURITY
Delhi
takes what it can
By Seema Sirohi
WASHINGTON - A new partnership centered around
common interests and goals is emerging between India and
the United States, two democracies that have spent
decades on opposite sides of the fence eyeing each other
with suspicion and exchanging accusations.
But
over the past few years, the tone of their dialogue has
undergone a drastic change. Last week, US President
George W Bush and Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee
announced a new "strategic partnership" that will allow
cooperation in hitherto taboo areas of civilian nuclear
and space programs, high-tech commerce and missile
defense. Their statement dealt with the "vision thing" -
it talked of big ideas, of a partnership in combating
terrorism, controlling proliferation of weapons of mass
destruction and promoting global peace and prosperity.
The language was downright sublime compared to the often
rancorous dialogue of the past. The relationship had
entered a new realm, officials on both sides said.
"The expanded cooperation is an important
milestone in transforming the relationship between the
United States and India. That relationship is based
increasingly on common values and common interests,"
said the statement issued in both capitals. The
announcement made on January 12 goes back to a meeting
between Bush and Vajpayee in November 2001 when the two
leaders talked of a "shared vision" and being "natural
allies". It took the better part of two years to work
out the details of this highly complex but far-reaching
agreement that puts the two countries on a different
footing. The level of trust and friendship has increased
appreciably.
The latest agreement envisions
joint development of commercial satellites, transfer of
American high-tech items long sought by India, a
dialogue on improving safety around civilian nuclear
reactors and discussion on missile defense. But for all
this to happen, India would have to revise its export
control laws, make them more stringent and ensure that
no technology leaks to eager middlemen who run a
flourishing trade selling nuclear technology to
countries not on the good guys' list. The announcement
is all the more significant because it comes shortly
after a series of exposes about nuclear secrets leaking
out of Pakistan's Khan Research Laboratories to Iran and
Libya, countries the US considers rogue states. That
India's record is spotless in this regard helped prevent
any last-minute hiccups.
But to arrive at a
stage where US experts will advise India on nuclear
safety is a huge step from 1998, when New Delhi came
under strict sanctions after it conducted its second
round of nuclear tests. The relationship went into a
deep freeze as Washington imposed an array of
restrictions on sales, banned Indian companies from
trade and denied visas to visiting scientists. The
Clinton administration cited chapter and verse of the
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty to which India is not a
signatory and demanded that India sign the Comprehensive
Test Ban Treaty. New Delhi refused, saying it was not in
its security interest living as it was in a "hostile
neighborhood".
The sanctions were slowly lifted
by the Bush administration, which looked for ways to
engage India as a partner in Asia. Some analysts say the
neo-conservative ideologues in Washington wanted India
to be a counterweight to China. But US obligations under
various international treaties dealing with nuclear
weapons and missile technology prohibit any cooperation
with countries which are outside the exclusive club of
the first five nuclear states. India has always shunned
the regime as unfair and arbitrary.
But in the
post September 11 world the Americans want to build
bridges around the world with key partners. India fits
that scheme, and if it means finding innovative ways to
cooperate in the forbidden areas, so be it. The White
House calculated it was a risk worth taking after the
Bharatiya Janata Party-led (BJP) government made it
clear that the strategic partnership was a "litmus test"
of the new relationship. Brajesh Mishra, Vajpayee's
confidant and key adviser, pushed hard to give concrete
shape to the emerging relationship with agreements and
understandings. He held several meetings with
Condoleezza Rice, Bush's national security adviser, who
was instrumental in forcing the US bureaucracy to move
and craft the new agreement, say officials familiar with
the process.
The fact that India was one of the
first countries to support Bush's idea of a National
Missile Defense announced early in the US administration
also helped. In addition, Vajpayee seriously considered
sending Indian troops to Iraq, but declined in the end.
But the fact that India would even contemplate joining
the US in a war that earned worldwide condemnation as a
gratuitous act committed on false premises was a
monumental shift. It was duly noted by the White House
and policy makers. Even though the Pentagon was deeply
disappointed by India's refusal, there was no
tit-for-tat revenge. The two countries were able to
continue working on the strategic partnership agreement.
The interests of the Bush administration, which sees the
world in black and white terms, were enmeshed
comfortable with the BJP, the most pro-American
political party in India.
But the strategic
partnership will take time to come into bloom, not only
because of the complexity of the subject, but also
because some US officials remain skeptical of granting
India these "privileges". Many in the State Department
are adamantly opposed to any American help to India in
any of the four areas envisioned because they continue
to see New Delhi as a "nuclear pariah" - a country that
crashed through the door, forcing the world to devise
ways to deal with its new status. They see the strategic
partnership agreement as rewarding a country that broke
the rules by conducting nuclear tests. Those in the
State Department who deal with Pakistan are concerned
that a definite "tilt" towards India would complicate
their already complex relations with Islamabad.
Currently, they need Pakistan more because of the "war
on terrorism".
A senior US official, briefing
reporters after the January 12 announcement, went out of
his way to stress that the strategic partnership with
India in the nuclear and space areas will be strictly
restricted to the civilian side. "This does not diminish
our concerns about India's nuclear and missile programs.
We are not asking for any changes in the US domestic
laws and there will be no changes in our commitment to
international treaties," he said, in an obvious attempt
to assuage those who are worried about the new
partnership.
While the US commitment at the
political level seems clear, things at the bureaucratic
level may be more difficult. The good news for India is
that the White House is clear as to where it wants to go
with India, and in the end that's what really counts.
(Copyright 2004 Asia Times Online Ltd. All
rights reserved. Please contact content@atimes.com for
information on our sales and syndication policies.)
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