New Delhi
20 September 2007
The India-United States relationship is not defined by the nuclear
deal and there are other "enduring and ongoing interests" that will deepen their bilateral,
regional and global partnership, a visiting Pentagon official said.
US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence for South and Southeast Asia Prof James Clad
on Thursday told a select gathering at the Observer Research Foundation here that some
of those interests will be "a result of external trends" and caused by "impersonal
forces", including the emergence of certain countries in the region and beyond.
Amplifying US Ambassador to India David Mulford's remarks on moving from 123
(nuclear pact) to 456 or comprehensive partnership, Prof Clad said that Proliferation
Security Initiative (PSI), Access and Cross-Servicing Agreement or Logistics Support
Arrangement (LSA) and missile defence figure prominently in Washington's "overall
horizon". There is a broad recognition in the US that India is a responsible member and
Pentagon, he said, hopes that "eventually" India will "formally" become a member of PSI
and missile defence.
He felt that the world of today is "different and fluid" and the nature of technological
changes requires some type of missile defence. India might therefore be interested to
move in that direction. He said that the Logistics Support Agreement will be a "barter
arrangement" allowing India and American fighters and warships to refuel at their
military bases in a moneyless exchange of goods and commodities.
Washington also has defence procurement issues in its cross-hair. Prof Clad reasoned
that India should be interested in diversifying her sources of arms procurement by
looking at the weapons in the American inventory. Doing so will qualitatively improve
India's defence capabilities and enhance her autonomy.
Prof Clad maintained that there is no "Machiavellain strategic objective" of selling arms
to India. He said: "The US is a nation of traders. We like to be with the winning country."
He nevertheless acknowledged that defence sales to India will blend business and
strategic interests and the "secondary and tertiary benefits" accruing to India from it will
deepen the bilateral partnership.
He, however, was circumspect about transferring high-end technology to India and
accepting the direct offset clause in defence purchases. He conceded that Washington
will not want to transfer technology without thinking about the consequences. "There is
the question of releasability," he said, adding that Pentagon, as a custodian of policy,
has a stringent system of review. Also, Washington prefers offsets to be used in a
"diversified fashion" in other sectors of the Indian economy, besides defence.
Prof Clad suggested that the US does not endorse permanent dictatorship in Pakistan.
"We are very clear," he said in response to the question whether the American idea of
stability in Pakistan would mean continuation of military rule or return of democracy.
"We look to resumption of electoral democracy ... we hope for the resumption of
democratic franchise ... the US policies are broadly aimed at that," he said. He, however,
insisted that the US is obliged to work with Pakistan because of Afghanistan. The US, he
added, desires good relations with all the countries in the region and India's interests
are served by a stable and pluralist Pakistan.
Prof Clad was formally approved by President George Bush for his current post in April
this year. At the time of his nomination, he was a professor of Near East and South Asian
Studies at the National Defence University in Washington, where he worked closely with
national security strategists from India, Morocco, Pakistan and other countries.
No comments:
Post a Comment