The Cohen Group: News: Op-Eds: America's New Beginning With India


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March 15, 2005 Tuesday

America's New Beginning With India
By Thomas Pickering and Joseph Ralston

Ambassador Pickering is senior vice president at the Boeing Company and former U.S. ambassador to India. Gen. Ralston is vice chairman at the Cohen Group and former vice chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff and supreme allied commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

America's relationship with India is at a crossroads, as U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrives in New Delhi today. This represents a strategic opportunity for both countries. The U.S. and India should have the confidence and capability to take full advantage of this moment to move forward with a robust package of new strategic, political, economic and business ties.

On our visit to India last month as co-leaders of a U.S.-India Business Council group of American defense-industry officials, we witnessed what can only be described as a sea change in Indian attitudes toward cooperation with the U.S. There is broad recognition emerging throughout all levels of Indian government and the business community of the distance that the U.S.-Indian relationship has traveled. The close cooperation on relief operations that occurred in January between New Delhi and Washington following the disastrous tsunami in Asia would not have been possible just a year ago. U.S. and Indian military forces train together in India and operate jointly in the South Asia region, Washington and New Delhi share sensitive intelligence on mutual threats both countries face in dealing with global and local terrorism.

Senior Indian government officials with whom we met emphasized a new willingness and desire to move forward in the strategic relationship with the U.S. This new attitude manifested itself not only in the tone and tenor of our meetings, but also in repeated requests for defense-industrial teaming relationships with American companies and for closer cooperation with U.S. officials to better understand American procedures, rules and regulations. The Indians understand they have a big government bureaucracy and demonstrated new willingness to open up to the U.S.

Following India's test detonation of a nuclear weapon in May 1998, the U.S. introduced economic and trade sanctions which brought most high-tech and defense trade between the two countries to a standstill. As a result, India viewed U.S. companies as unreliable suppliers, because they could no longer guarantee the supply of spare parts and technology upgrades for equipment India had already purchased. While the sanctions are behind us, the issues of trust and confidence remain critical to both sides and will require significant improvement by both governments for true U.S.-Indian defense-industrial partnerships to take hold.

India is the largest democracy in the world and holds foreign currency reserves of more than $130 billion. It wants to spend a significant portion of this money and its regular defense budget on upgrading its older, outdated Soviet-era military equipment. India recently made a request for information to support the possible purchase of American fighter aircraft like the F-16 and F-18. If this request goes unapproved by the U.S. Government licensing process, the Indians will likely buy French or Russian aircraft instead.

New Delhi wants to upgrade or replace many of its other current air and naval platforms and is looking for the best product at the best price. Under the Next Steps in Strategic Partnership process, the U.S. has already pledged to increase cooperation with India in the areas of missile defense, civilian space, civilian nuclear-energy production, and high-technology trade. But, by considering the U.S. as a key provider of new military equipment and upgrades, New Delhi is also telling Washington that it wants to more fully align itself with America.

India is focused on becoming a regional political, economic and military power, as a counterweight to growing Chinese influence and as a check to Chinese ambitions. After China, India is the largest consumer of energy resources in Asia. As competition for the world's supply of oil and gas heats up, India cannot afford to let China outmaneuver it in energy dealings in the Middle East or Russia. This competition between India and China needs to be managed properly because long-term peace, stability, and security in Asia is in everyone's best interests, including those of the U.S.

In addition to Ms. Rice's current visit to India, a number of high-profile Indian government leaders are expected in Washington this year. These visits will offer ample opportunities for U.S. administration officials and Congressional lawmakers to take full measure of the new Indian attitude toward cooperation with America. Bold and innovative thinking on both sides and the courage to get beyond some long-held mistrust holds promise of an even more vibrant, rich, and mutually beneficial new relationship, and a true strategic partnership.

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