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Indo-US Relations Have Reached Highest Point Ever

Interview with Indian Ambassador Lalit Mansingh by Aziz Haniffa, National Affairs Editor, India Abroad, January 3, 2003

Q. Have bilateral discussions between India and the U.S. moved progressively beyond being Pakistan-centric as many people believe it still is?

A. Sure. If you survey the developments during last year, there was a focus on Indo-Pakistan issues, because after December 13, 2001, when Parliament was attacked, we went on a full-scale mobilization and there was international diplomatic effort to put across the message to Pakistan that it had to stop terrorism or else consequences would follow.

But, we have managed to steer the discussions away from just Indo-Pak issues because we have a broader relationship with the U.S.

When the Prime Minister was here two years ago, there was a fact sheet that was issued. It outlined the entire range of cooperation, including in areas in which we had not made much progress earlier -- cooperation in peaceful uses of nuclear energy, cooperation in space, increasing high technology commerce. All these were so-called new areas. And now we are back on focus.

When President Bush and the Prime Minister met in September in New York, the discussions were not on India-Pakistan. They were discussions on the broader bilateral dialogue, including the issues I mentioned. So this is what we were talking about. The so-called trinity of issues, other areas where we have made considerable progress, in military cooperation, economic cooperation.

Q. The Bush Administration, think tanks, Congress have lauded the Jammu & Kashmir election. Are you finding a sense of optimism in Administration circles that the process can now be taken forward? What do they want the Government of India to do?

A. The real issue behind the election was whether it is going to be democracy or terrorism, which decides the fate of Kashmir. The Kashmiri people by risking their lives, threats, intimidation and by exercising the right of franchise in a free and fair election, voted decisively against terrorism. Mind you, more than 200 people were killed by the terrorists after the election was announced. In spite of that the voters wanted to exercise their democratic rights.

This, the U.S. has acknowledged, is the turning point, is the beginning of a resolution of what they call the Kashmir issue. Why? Because for a long time people said we don't know what the Kashmiri people are saying. We know what Pakistan is saying, we know what India is saying, but now we have heard what the people of Kashmir want. They want a return to normalcy. They have voted in a government which has promised them peace, the healing touch, a focus on development, a focus on issues which matter to the Kashmiri people.

Q. You have been very public that India welcomes American facilitation vis-à-vis the Kashmir issue, but not mediation. What do you mean by this?

A. There is a difference between mediation and facilitation. A mediator is one who not only brings two conflicting parties together, but suggests a way of finding a solution. A facilitator is somebody who just suggests a meeting without being intrusive.

We have said many times before that we don't need a mediator because we are not adverse to talking to each other. We have signed the Simla Agreement, we have signed the Lahore Declaration, we have said we will sit down and discuss our issues bilaterally.

We speak the same language. We don't need an interpreter. To that extent mediation is not necessary. Facilitation, if somebody helps as a friend to suggest getting together, that's welcome. But ultimately Indo-Pakistan issues can only be resolved by India and Pakistan without the intrusion of a third party.

Q. On a personal level as Ambassador, how would you say last year has been for you in terms of what you have done in moving the relationship forward?

A. It's a sense of intense satisfaction that I feel the misunderstandings of the Cold War and the post-Cold War period have been removed. We are talking to each other and not at each other. We are emphasizing our common values and common interests and not exaggerating our differences. I think this is the highest point that Indo-US relations have reached ever.

Q. In terms of the Indian American community, what would you say you have done in perhaps building up a much better rapport between the Embassy and the community?

A. You have been following the Indian American scene for a long time, much longer than I have been. I was associated with the community the last time I was here [as Deputy Chief of Mission about a decade ago] and I have been following the community since then and I have been following the activities of the Indian community abroad, including in Britain, which I think is another success story.

What I see between the last time I was here and this time is that there is definitely a greater political awareness among Indian Americans here. A greater participation in mainstream political activities of this country and that's very welcome. We have seen their activism in the last Presidential election. We have seen their activism during the last election, which was held for Congress. And so I would say there is a deep sense of satisfaction that finally the Indian American community is emerging as a significant factor in bringing our two countries closer together.

That is not to say I am complacent. I tell our Indian American friends that they have a long way to go. Now what is my interest in that? They are all American citizens. I tell them that I am not their Ambassador. Their Ambassador sits in Delhi. But we have a common interest in bringing the two countries closer together and they can play a very important role. They have played an important role in creating the India Caucus in Congress -- the largest caucus that we see. They still have to have a presence at the federal level.

At the city level, they have a good liaison with mayors and the councils, with the governors and local legislators and mind you we now have four legislators of Indian origin. But the effort has to be upgraded and to have a presence at the federal level in Congress, in the Administration. I hope that will come about soon. All the signals are positive. There is a certain dynamism, which is very welcome. Now they are looking ahead. I can see that Indian Americans are looking at think tanks, at universities, at centers for Indian studies, at museums.

I think the mainstreaming of the Indian American community is finally taking place and that's a very welcome development.

Q. In terms of specifics of your outreach to the community, the Embassy's rapport with the community -- are you comfortable that this has been established?

A. In the last 15 years, we have had good interaction with the community, but we were following a certain track. We were talking to the associations and organizations of the community and you have a wide diversity. You have linguistic associations, religious associations, regional associations and just a handful of political awareness associations. Now we are doing that. We are in touch with these organizations, although it is a big job to keep in touch with such a large number.

But we are also focusing on the political awareness part of it because so far as I am concerned this is what will give a bigger push to Indo-US relations. And so we are reaching out to the political activists. When I go to any place outside Washington, I meet leaders of the associations, but also meet smaller groups of people who have been in close touch with Congressmen, Senators, governors, mayors and interacting with them.

Q. Is meeting with grassroots Indian American political organizations what you plan to develop even further in coming months?

A. As they say, all politics is local and I have to remind myself that I am not an Ambassador to Washington, DC or to the beltway. That I am Ambassador to the U.S. While it is true that policy making and decision-making takes place here, there is a vast, rich, hinterland which provides the inputs for policy making So I think it's important to go out and meet the governors, mayors, business leaders, academia and Indian American community leaders. Go out and get the pulse of what they are feeling, what the problems are, and to put across our point of view. I am glad that that's happening at last.

All across the U.S. there is a bubbling going on -- a kind of reawakening of the Indian American community.