Daily Times

The growing relationship between the United States and India revolves around collective security interests, and is noticed in diplomatic circles, especially by the US Congressmen and Foreign Affairs Committee members, chaired by Republican Ed Royce of California. The US recognises its relationship with India on special terms in which New Delhi has an important role to play in Asia.

The primary objective of this relationship is to build India as a counterweight to China, and the secondary objective is to create a sidekick in the region where the US has vested interests. India has utilised the situation to get certain long-term transactional benefits, but is uncertain of its role in the region under the supervision of Uncle Sam. Instead, now India wants to aggressively force hegemonic policies on neighbouring countries.

In the past, Pakistan was the primary option for the US to attain its strategic interests. The major reason was the support that Pakistan could offer to the US and India could not; for instance, Pakistan can and (has in the past) provided its territory as a platform for the US to operationalise from. Times have changed, and the present scenario is a significant departure from India’s past policy of not entering into a military agreement with any major power.

Now, India has signed the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) with the United States, which will allow their militaries to work closely, and use each other’s bases for repair and replenishment of supplies.

Customarily, India always had an important place in the US strategic thinking, and that is why New Delhi has been identified as the largest recipient of US economic assistance over a 66-year period. The Pentagon publicised that it has established an India Rapid Reaction Cell (IRRC); the US has never bestowed this kind of importance on any country — pledging an entire platform. In a recent testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, the head of the US Pacific Command, Admiral Harry B Harris, declared: “India presents a wonderful opportunity for us.”

Since 1950s, Pakistan has had cordial relations with the US, and has voluntarily offered its services when asked by the United States, but relations between these two countries remained lukewarm. India’s BJP government led by Narendra Modi is trying to take these strained relations to a whole new level. Currently, all these platforms are being used to unnecessarily malign Pakistan; for instance, Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Terrorism, Ted Poe, and Congressman Dana Rohrabacher moved a bill in Congress seeking to designate Pakistan as a “state sponsor of terrorism.”

India is swiftly intensifying its diplomatic efforts to cash on this progressive strategic partnership with the US, and by these efforts New Delhi is bullying and threatening Pakistan. When officially nominated as the prime minister, Modi carried out a full-scale propaganda war against Pakistan, and repeatedly rejected the option of a dialogue. Meanwhile, in the backdrop of the Uri attack, India has openly displayed its hostility, and even recently had a review on the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan.

Now when the US is going to conclude its military campaign in Afghanistan it should count on Pakistan. Contrarily, it is playing the India card, which is challenging Pakistan’s strategic and security interests in the region. Similarly, the US is unnecessarily favouring India hoping that India when needed would counter China, which is not very likely to happen, and would only add to security challenges. India does not have the power or the strategy to fight against China, or in case if needed, to fight against Russia, the oldest rival of the United States.

There are particular established limitations on relations between the US and India. One is the divergent views on the issue of nonproliferation, especially on the NPT. Secondly, the US’ commercial interests in India are so far not at the potential where foundation of an ideal partnership could be laid down. Meanwhile, foreign direct investment of the US in India comes at a very slow pace. The most important consideration neglected by these two countries is to find a way to talk about the role of China in the region.

However, nowadays, India is using the Senate India Caucus as a cover to influence several US congressmen such as Ed Royce and Ted Poe. India used a similar kind of platform, the US India Political Action Committee, to finalise US-India civil nuclear deal. Currently, some Republican congressmen are pursuing a well-funded agenda in mainstreaming a nuclear India, for instance, to help India attain membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group.

This policy position of the US is contradictory to what its foreign policy has been in the past, which the 39th president of the US, Jimmy Carter, wisely articulated in 2006: “Knowing for more than three decades of Indian leaders’ nuclear ambitions, I and all other presidents included them in a consistent policy: no sales of civilian nuclear technology or uncontrolled fuel to any country that refused to sign the NPT.”

The writer is a freelance columnist