New Era of Indo-US Relations

A new era could really begin in the Indo-US bilateral relations after the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's five-day official visit to India. Hillary's this trip started from Mumbai and concluded with her meetings with the Indian politicians in New Delhi.

The aim of Hillary's visit was to provide a strong basis of mutual relations between industrialists, prominent citizens, and younger generation of both countries as well as to the bilateral relations between India and the United States, and she was quite successful.

The opinion of the Indian diplomatic circles has not been good with regard to Democratic Administration of the US. The US President Barack Obama increased this apprehension through some of his elections speeches.

In present visit, Hillary has put to rest several such apprehensions. The relations between India and the United States are not being dictated now by noble thoughts of some political leader, but by the long-term perspective adopted by the Pentagon, according to which if the US has to maintain its status in the 21st century, it would have to move on with strategic partnership with some regional powers based more or less on equality.

Nuclear Programme
In fact, it is going to be 10 years of the Pokhran nuclear tests by India and Chagai nuclear tests by Pakistan. Hillary tried to clearly underline two different viewpoints the United States has developed during these past 10 years toward the two countries.

In 1999, Pakistan was a strategic partner of the US, whereas the US used to look at India, until then, as a country in the Soviet camp, which was compelled to lean toward it as the Soviet camp disintegrated.

At present, the US is calling India a strategic partner, and also it is also obvious from the announcements of agreements and understandings during Hillary's visit that it is eager to move forward in that direction.

Pakistan-Centric Issues
The mention of Pakistan's nuclear program in US statements is being made only in the context of concerns related to nuclear terrorism, whereas US energy companies are eager about the beginning of a new chapter of the Indian nuclear program.

During her visit, Hillary tried to say it in different ways that instead of looking at itself with Pakistan's yardstick, India should move forward with global ambitions and should consider the US as a reliable ally in this journey. This is a very big change in the US viewpoint and its implications would become clear as time goes by.

Priorities Formulated
Moreover, in the finer details hereafter, India should keep its priorities clear and should not let them get mixed up with the interests of the US. Pakistan could be a common headache for both, but both would have to deal with it in their own ways. If power companies and arms companies of the US want to do business with India, the US would have to mould its laws accordingly.

The manner in which a way out has been found on the end use agreement of weapons during this tour, the US would have to find a similar way out in the matter of reprocessing of nuclear fuel and other matters.