New Delhi
9 November 2010
A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman has said it understands India's
aspirations to play a greater role in the United Nations. Welcome though it may be, New
Delhi harbours no illusions about the "difficult" and "complicated" road ahead, to borrow
words from US president Barack Obama's interview to PTI ahead of his just concluded
visit to India.
The day after Obama signalled his support to India's quest for a permanent UNSC seat, a
source familiar with the matter said Obama's unequivocal and explicit political statement
is both symbolic and substantive. There was appreciation of the difficulties that will test
India's diplomatic skill and nerve, particularly on contentious issues such as Iran and
Burma which were flagged by Obama in his speech to Parliament.
New Delhi is not unduly perturbed by Obama's stark comments about how it has chosen
to avoid certain issues, and that with increased power comes increased responsibility.
The source recalled that New Delhi's point of view has not always coincided with
Washington's and in the UN, India has tended to take decisions propelled by her
national interests or compulsions.
There can be no bargaining on certain issues, the source insisted, before going to
explain that an obsession with talk of being pro- or anti-US or of north - south divide is
not only not relevant but can prove counterproductive. All such talk has faded into
obscurity, it was added for good measure.
On the Iranian nuclear issue, New Delhi can be expected to remain true to its formulation
that while the Persian Gulf nation in India's neighbourhood has a right to peaceful uses
of nuclear energy by virtue of its being an NPT signatory, it has certain obligations, too.
At the same time, the source insisted that India will not want to erase its civilisational
links with Iran or abandon an important neighbour.
New Delhi has forwarded a similar argument in the case of Burma. The source said India
has its own interests and compulsions vis-a-vis Burma. Obama has said India must not
only "look east" but also "engage east" and that is precisely what India is doing with
Burma, was the quip.
In Beijing, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei said China values India's
status in the international affairs and is ready for consultations with India and other UN
member-states on the issue of UNSC reform. He said China wants democratic and
patient consultations over the issue.
Notwithstanding China's apparent antipathy towards India, the expectation here is that a
lot will depend on India's own performance as a non-permanent UNSC member in 2011
and 2012. If India conducts herself "responsibly and objectively", it will help to convince
sceptics and naysayers.
Besides the G-4 (Group of Four, which comprises India, Japan, Germany and Brazil), the
53-member African Union and the United for Consensus (or Coffee Club) have advanced
their respective proposals for UNSC reform. The Coffee Club comprises 30-odd countries
such as Pakistan, Italy, South Korea and Argentina.
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