New Delhi, India: July 30, 2008- Dr. Raj Baldev, Cosmo Theorist – The foreign policy of India and the strategies of their farsightedness look to be very poor, I don’t  know how many decades are needed for India to assess China’s degree of sincerity towards India?

Even after the great struggle of Indo-US Deal and the opposition of Communist MPs, the main allies of the UPA Govt.’ which compelled the govt. to seek ‘No Confidence Motion, does not wish to understand that the opposition of Communist MPs was just at an indirect instance of China, who they regard their Master being communists, perhaps not India even though they always claim their national loyalty.

After the Indian Govt. won the Trust Vote, China looks to have hinted Pakistan to create a serious problem for India by making a strong effort of blocking India's efforts to secure a country-specific safeguards agreement from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) with an idea of putting them to a halt.

Thanks to United States that Bush Administration gave a rebuff to Pakistan not to make a mischief. The US Administration  jolted Pakistan Govt. that it should not play any mischief by opposing the India-US Moves on Safeguard and Technological exports since it had already given in writing that it would not oppose India’s interest in any manner, and to do so at this stage would not be allowed. It further said that it might not be in the interest of the international community to listen to Pakistan and to allow it to retrace their commitment.

Immediately after Pakistan wrote a letter to the IAEA Board seeking a vote on the issue, "the US got moving and conveyed to Islamabad that Pakistan had already given a commitment, through a previous foreign secretary, that it will offer no opposition to the US pursuing India-specific exceptions at the IAEA and the NSG (Nuclear Suppliers Group)," Shireen Mazari wrote in the News.

As a result, the Pakistani foreign ministry "was asked to stop all activities meant to counter India-US moves on safeguards and technology exports at the IAEA and the NSG respectively and that’s how the poisonous arrow from Pakistan was made to deactivate.

Despite India’s being in good humor, their Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office Prithviraj Chavan on Tuesday has practically failed to secure any assurance from China on the India-U.S. civilian nuclear energy cooperation.

“They [the Chinese side] conveyed to us that they had no objection to peaceful international cooperation on nuclear energy as long as any such cooperation adheres to international non-proliferation commitments,” Mr. Chavan told journalists.
This has been Beijing’s standard statement on the nuclear deal issue. A similar sentiment was expressed when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had met Chinese President Hu Jintao on the sidelines of the G-8 meet earlier in the month. And our Prime Minister innocently took that line in a gala mood. China is a very serious country, it has a long planning for everything and use highly diplomatic in language carrying different meaning, but the Indian Foreign Office have formed a habit of failing everytime to follow China’s tune. 

Given that India is not a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Chinese stance has been open to varying interpretations.

Even though Mr. Chavan repeated the view, asserted in the past by Indian officials, that he did not foresee China being a problem despite the cloudiness of its response to the deal thus far, it carried little response.

Mr. Chavan, in fact, handed over to Dai Binguo, State Councilor in charge of foreign affairs and China’s special representative to the border negotiations with India, two letters from Dr. Singh addressed to Mr. Hu and Premier Wen Jiabao, which explain India’s clear position on the nuclear deal and also to seek China’s support as and when the issue comes up before the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Nuclear Suppliers Group.

Mr. Chavan also addressed Chinese concerns and explained India’s position on nuclear energy.

“I stressed India’s impeccable record … assured them of all the voluntary measures taken by us to prevent proliferation.”

The Minister emphasized to the Chinese that the deal was not bilateral between India and the U.S. “but an international civilian nuclear energy cooperation arrangement aimed at ending India’s nuclear isolation.”

At his one-hour meeting with Mr. Dai, the two sides discussed the positive momentum of bilateral ties in recent times. He assured Mr. Chavan that China wanted to “further substantiate its strategic and cooperative partnership with India.” In fact, China evaded the real answer.

India must understand that the answer given by the China Govt. is not a certain view to support India. India can, however, bank on President Bush who is likely to persuade  China indirectly to support India on this score so as not to let India deal down.

Since Russia is not against India apart from many other countries and with America’s indirect support, India may eventually succeed in their mission but they should learn how far they can trust their neighbours?