'U.S. to work towards lifting sanctions on India'

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

SAN FRANCISCO, AUG. 12. The Bush administration has said that it will start working with Congress when it returns from its recess next month in the hope of lifting sanctions against India that were imposed in 1998 in the aftermath of the nuclear tests, The Washington Post says in its Sunday Editions.

The Deputy Secretary of State, Mr. Richard Armitage, has told The Post that State Department officials had already held some talks with Congress and would make progress in easing sanctions against India ``at a speed visible to the naked eye'' when law makers return from recess.

The thinking is that once sanctions against India were eased, the United States could expand an evolving military cooperation that would include joint exercises, officer exchanges and dealing with piracy in the Indian Ocean.

On the issue of easing sanctions, the Commander-in- Chief of the U.S. Pacific Command, Admiral Dennis Blair has told The Post, ``It would give us a wider range of flexibility in moving forward in these areas.'' High-level talks between defence officials of the two countries are slated for later in the year.

``You've seen some seeds sprouting. With the (upcoming talks) we now have a way forward with these activities,'' Adm. Blair has said. Also it has to be remembered that the U.S. and India have a mechanism in place for regular exchange of views at the level of senior officials on cooperation in the realm of peace keeping operations.

``Where the rubber hits the road is how do we address sanctions. Both sides will move as fast as they possibly can given the legal considerations we have to work through. There is now a common desire to have a much closer, much better relationship,'' an unnamed Pentagon official has told the paper.

In the last six months, the Bush administration has made it known that it is keen on picking up from where the Clinton administration left off in the realm of bilateral relations, perhaps even injecting more momentum to the process put in place by a Democratic administration.

As proof of this, there has been a flurry of high level exchanges in the last several months including an unprecedented meeting at the Oval Office between the Indian External Affairs and Defence Minister, Mr. Jaswant Singh, and the President, Mr. George W Bush. The President dropped by the meeting with the National Security Advisor, Dr. Condoleeza Rice, and escorted Mr.Singh to the Oval Office for a discussion that went far beyond an exchange of pleasantries.

One perception is that Washington's interests in India has to do with China - that is in a worry here of China challenging American interests in Asia. This has been officially rejected by administration officials who have consistently made the point that relations with India are on their own merits and not pegged to a third country. ``For us to have a sustainable relationship with India, it must be based in and on India and not be on a relationship with India to face a third country,'' Mr. Armitage has been quoted in The Post.The argument has been that if Washington is keen on playing down the China factor, it is on account of not wanting to offend New Delhi which has always been eager and proud to show its independence in foreign policy.

The other reason why the Bush administration may not be playing up the China angle is not wanting to start the debate all over about the ``containment'' of China - an exercise that will prove quite tough not merely in a domestic context but also in managing its relationship with Beijing.

In all the optimism expressed in official quarters on the lifting of sanctions, there are at least two things that need to be kept in mind. First, the talk of lifting the punitive measures against India is confined to the post-1998 sanctions only.

There is hardly any mention of all the restrictive measures that have been in place since the late 1970s.

Secondly, there is concern among Democratic lawmakers, especially in the anti-proliferation group, of India's nuclear and missile programmes. While Capitol Hill will not be placing obstacles in the road to fully lifting sanctions against India, some tough questions will nevertheless be posed.

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Section  : International
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