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Asian Voice |12th November 2016
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Coherent paradigm of Indian foreign policy Indian foreign policy has frequently been a perplexing subject for Indians and foreigners alike. Morality, nonviolence, non-alignment have been the pool from which wisdom and enlightenment have been sought – without achieving the desired comprehension. Such issues include space for democratic values and other imperative that characterize open societies. However, the final package requires a definable core, which Henry Kissinger, as thinker and historian recognized and postulated with admirable elegance in his latest work, World Order: Reflections on the Character of Nations and the Course of History. Free of the burdens of office, his treatment of India displays an understanding that was woefully lacking when he was National Security Advisor to President Richard Nixon during the East Pakistan crisis in 197172. He starts with a quotation from Jawaharlal Nehru on the prime objective of Indian foreign policy, which runs thus: ‘Whatever policy you may lay down, the art of conducting the foreign affairs of a country lies in finding out what is most advantageous to the country. We may talk about international goodwill and mean what we say. But in the ultimate analysis, a government functions for the good of the country it governs and no government dare do anything which in the short or long run is manifestly to the disadvantage of the country.’ Dr Kissinger comments: ‘Kautiya (or Machiavelli) could not have said it better.’ He continues: ‘The essence of this strategy was that it allowed India to draw support from both Cold War camps – securing the military aid and diplomatic cooperation of the Soviet bloc, even while courting American development assistance and moral support of the US intellectual establishment. However irritating to Cold War America, it was a wise course to take for an emerging nation. With a then- nascent military establishment and underdeveloped economy, India would have been a respected but secondary ally. As a free agent, it could exercise a much- wider reaching influence.’ Apropos of the present, the former Harvard professor writes: ‘Under a Hindu nationalist-led government elected by a decisive majority in May 2014 on a platform of reform and economic growth, India can be expected to pursue its traditional foreign policy goals with added vigor.’ The country’s traditional friendly ties with the English-speaking ‘Anglosphere’ will continue apace. ‘With the reconfiguration of the American position in
the Middle East,’ says Dr Kissinger, ‘the various regional powers will seek new partners to buttress their positions and to develop some kind of regional order. And India’s own strategic analysis will not permit a vacuum in Afghanistan or the hegemony in Asia of another power… India will be a fulcrum of twenty-first global order: an indispensable element, based on its geography, resources and traditions of sophisticated leadership in the strategic and ideological evolution of the region and the concepts of order at whose intersection it stands.’ It is against this lucid presentation that a number of observations of increasing relevance can be made. The first involves India’s fraught relationship with Pakistan. It is becoming clearer by the day that Islamabad is pursuing the fourth-dimension of war with India that requires no formal declaration of hostilities, as understood under the conventions of International law. The pursuit of this India-centric policy is to weaken and, if possible, destroy India in the fulfillment of a divinelyordained messianic mission. It requires a robust and sophisticated response, at multiple levels, to thwart the design. If Kashmir is the pivot of Pakistani policy, Tibet is China’s pivot in its tense, unfolding relationship with India. China’s indulgence, if not covert support, of Pakistan’s jihadi terrorism refracts a common goal. The minatory tone of China’s protest notes to India, following the visit to Arunachal Pradesh by US Ambassador Richard Verma and another that included reprehensible insults directed at the Dalai Lama for accepting an invitation to visit the Indian State - which China claims as its own - has been met with an exemplary statement from Vikas Swarup, spokesman of India’s Ministry of External Affairs. It bespoke both contempt and defiance for a bully out of kilter with norms civilized diplomatic discourse. It says little for China’s diplomatic skills, that its sole ‘all weather’ friend across continents is Pakistan. According to Andrew Small, the American investigative reporter, China supplied Pakistan with sensitive nuclear weapon technology and even a bomb itself, and made available missile technology to carry such weapons to their Indian targets, since Pakistan has repeatedly emphasized that Pakistan has no targets elsewhere in the world. Chinese projected hegemony over Asia has a clear parallel with that of Imperial Japan’s prewar CoProsperity Sphere and is reminiscent of Adolf Hitler’s Third Reich in Europe.
The new President of USA: Full of potential Wednesday (3am EST), Republican candidate Donald Trump publicly spoke about his election as the 45th President of the most powerful country in the world. He was, for many, a changed person. He gave a glowing tribute to Senator Hillary Clinton, appealed for national unity and in a way made appropriate proclamation of his intention and positivism. This should not surprise anybody. This is the cardinal strength of a democratic process. An ambitious self-made businessman of international experience, who has no practical knowledge of public life or a position in the political field, has been seen as a ‘different’ person but given a chance to establish himself and live the big American dream. This in itself is a manifestation of a unique kind of democracy. The credit goes to the founders of the American Constitution that a determined and ambitious person can enter the political fray and create a huge impact and acquire the position he desires. President Donald Trump has several pressing problems. At home he has to build a united country, try to appease the feelings of those who he had upset, especially in the last 19 months of a hard-fought election campaign. He also has to fulfil the aspirations of who he termed as marginalised, ignored and disadvantaged communities. To create a united nation after a bitterly fought and to a certain extent hateful campaign is not easy. But it has been done before both in the US and other democratic countries. Internationally,
President Trump has to create new equations with Russia, China, emerging world power India as well as other traditional allies like Europe, Japan, Canada and especially Mexico. With the Islamic world, perhaps the going may be difficult to begin with, but a common ground against extremism and terrorism is possible, which is the need of the hour. In a strange way, the new President is, perhaps, facing the same challenges as the British Prime Minister. With Russia and China there is every hope for a better equation with Donald Trump as the President. A businessman has his own skill of negotiations. With American businesses craving for better and warmer relationship with China, perhaps Trump may bring the triumph as well. Donald Trump has been controversial, robust or some of his pronouncements about women, Muslims, minorities, etc. will have a bearing, but things are likely to change for the better. Many on the international scene will also have to adjust to a new American President, who has received a clear mandate from his electorates as well as a majority for his party in both Houses of Congress. It is part of the democratic process for the candidates to flaunt their own strengths and attack opponents’ weaknesses. Now that is a matter of past than the immediate future. A great nation like the United States of America has embarked on a new path of progress, prosperity as well as peace within itself and other nations. All men and women of goodwill should wish them well.
Britain in glorious finery The recent ennoblement of Jitesh Gadhia as a Conservative peer does Britain proud. An Asian immigrant from Uganda fleeing the oppression of Idi Amin, he arrived in Britain and discovered its level playing field, protected by the rule of law. Jitesh Gadhia became a successful businessman, a pivotal force in some of the investment flows between Britain and India, from steel to pharmaceuticals, which experience enabled him to work closely with David Cameron, Lord Gadhia is fervently of the view that the former prime minister was the principal architect of the present UK-India partnership. He also oversaw the dialogue between British govern-
ment and the Indian diaspora. Lord Gadhia took his oath in the House of Lords on the 1848 edition of the Rig Veda translated from the Sanskrit into English by the iconic Oxford-based scholar Max Muller. His maiden speech in the Second Chamber drew numerous plaudits from fellow peers. In a change of scene, Prime Minister Teresa May lit the lamp for her first Diwali celebrations in 10 Downing Street. Her visit to New Delhi should not merely cement Indo-British ties but take them forward to a new cycle of mutual trust and economic and technological cooperaztion.
There is no guarantee of reaching a goal at a certain time, but there is a guarantee of never attaining goals that are never set. -David McNally (1991)
Cllr Sachin Shah
Leader of the Harrow Council
An opportunity we mustn't lose It has been a busy few weeks, with many of our communities celebrating Navratri, Diwali and Remembrance Day. Last month we have also heard about the Government’s decision to approve a third runway, which I welcome. The need for greater air capacity in London and the south east is acknowledged by all sides. Of the viable choices open to us, Heathrow is clearly the best the best for jobs and investment, the best for London and for the country. This is in part because of its position, because it is already established as the premier airport for London and the south east and because of its connectivity. A new runway is estimated to bring 5,000 new jobs and give the economy a £1.5 billion boost, with new destinations being available. I’ve supported Heathrow’s expansion from the very beginning. There is a selfish reason behind this – Heathrow has been giving
Harrow’s local economy a huge boost for generations and this expansion will bring even more jobs and growth to our borough, improve our status as a global hub for trade and travel, and bring huge benefits for small businesses too. Harrow’s the best borough in London for small businesses, and everyone from our construction companies to our caterers will benefit from Heathrow’s expansion. Infrastructure projects of this scale can be disruptive, and if the third runway goes ahead, some people will lose their homes, while many more will be affected. They have a democratic right to challenge. As politicians, we must respect them and the people who represent them. If this project is to succeed, it must pick a way through these challenges responsibly. We’ve been handed a golden opportunity here to resolve a structural crisis that has held us back for too long - we must not squander it.k
Standing by India in her ‘darkest hours’ Sergei Chemezov, CEO of Russia’s Rostec State Corporation, an umbrella organization of 700 hi-tech civilian and military companies, remarked, in the context of the Modi-Putin talks on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Goa, that Russia had stood by India in her ‘darkest hours.’ This is something Prime Minister Modi has never tired of repeating himself, and was very much in line with the sentiments of Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Narasimha Rao, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh. Chemezov said India was a ‘friend and ally and not just a business partner; Russia had also stood by India during sanctions imposed on her in the aftermath of the country’s Pokhran nuclear tests in May 1998 (See page 12). Take some time to study the trajectory of Sino-Soviet relations: a defence treaty signed in February 1950 and projected to last 30 years: it barely made it through its first decade. The erstwhile partners split on territorial issues and spheres of influence: Eastern Europe for Moscow, Asia, Africa and Latin America for China, along the lines drawn up by Lin Biao’s tract, ‘Long Live the Victory of People’s War.’ When the SinoSoviet splint went public, it was revealed that Russia’s developing ties with India had caused affront to Chairman Mao and his coterie. The parallel, although not cast in stone, is worth noting in the current context. If Russia was subject to Chinese control as certain Indian media gurus, most notably in the Times of India, goofily pronounced, why should Moscow enter into such ambitious arms and energy deals with India? India, for its part, well understands Russia’s historic pivotal role in the heartland of Eurasia as a bulwark against predatory imperialisms from West and East. In other words, both powers – India and Russia - are determined to prevent a would-be hegemon from controlling the Asian continent. It best symbolizes the convergence of their respective national interests. Long may this continue. Editor: CB Patel
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