FLAIR - REAR WINDOW

Winds Of Change

Front Foot
_____RAJEEV SHUKLA

People may not believe it, but I strongly feel that India has finally got the opportunity to give a new turn, after 54 years, to its relationship with the US. This relationship is not going to be one of a master and slave nor will it be that of a parasite — like Pakistan. For the first time, the US wants a partnership on equal terms with India on a global scale.

So far, India has been extending a hand of friendship and it is only now that the US is keen on a new relationship. On the night of September 7 in the White House, it was obvious that the US administration had recognised the importance of India and Indians.

Till late in the night, the top brass of the American Government were dancing on the floor of the White House in the west wing with saree- and kurta-clad Indians. Madeline Albright, wearing a matronly blue suit, lamented to a friend: ‘‘I wish I could have worn a saree tonight.’’ President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary, Secretary of State Albright, Secretaries of Defense, Treasury and Commerce and other top-notch personnel from the US administration, along with a number of US Congress members and senators, stayed up late. Contrary to convention, since the guest of honour had left the party early to catch his flight, the First Couple took the guests inside the White House and on to the dance floor. Not only that, they met every member personally and then went to sleep at around one in the morning.

Foster Son Clinton

If US Congressman Brad Sherman is to be believed, President Clinton may come to India once more before leaving the White House. According to him, the President is fascinated by India and is planning to visit the country once more before February. In fact, talks are going on in the White House, that the President may make a stopover in an Indian city enroute to Vietnam.

The joke doing the rounds in the Indian community is that Clinton was like a foster son, giving a helping hand to Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee all through the visit, realising his knee problem. Watch out Ranjan Bhattacharya!

And while being briefed about Vajpayee, the US media were also informed that the Prime Minister was born on Christmas.

The Indian guests, who had never had such absolute access to the White House, roamed all over, while even peeping into the residential block of the President. Not only that, the son of a present governor in India was keen to peep into the library where Monica Lewinsky used to work. A number of Indian couples who have been living in the US for more than 40 years felt that this was a dream come true: an entry to the White House with so much respect and honour.

It is not as if the US is going ga-ga over us unnecessarily. The US administration always formulates a strategy and accordingly, the foreign and economic policies are pursued. There are a couple of reasons why the US has changed its attitude towards India. Whether Al Gore wins or Junior Bush — both are quite positive towards India. Firstly, the credit for this goes to Indian Americans. They are not only contributing $50 billion to the US economy, but have also become a symbol of wisdom and talent. Most American companies prefer to keep Indians on their boards as showpieces. Any Krishnamurthy or Ramalingam can easily get a job in any American company. Indians are getting preference over other foreigners everywhere, right from information technology, the finance world, medicine, engineering, space research, defence, Hollywood, bio-technology to academics. There is a saying in the US today that India may not be important for US today, but the Indians are.

It is a slap on Henry Kissinger’s face who had once said that while other countries are more important, India is self important. Indians in the USA have also started participating in US politics to a large extent, which is what the Jews have been doing so far.

The disease of chanda (donations) has caught up with the Americans as well, thanks to our Indians there. Both Gore and Bush are heavily on to the ‘kari pakora-butter chicken’ network. They also go to the residences of Indian billionaires for dinners and collect millions of dollars. Clinton and Hillary themselves have been to quite a few Indian homes to collect money. In one such gathering, Clinton has announced that Indians should be accommodated in key positions in the US administration when the new Government assumes office.

Other than Indian Americans, the opening up of the insurance and telecom sectors, disinvestment of PSUs and the China factor in Asia, all have helped in changing the
attitude of the US. The bitter resolution of Congress member Gillman against China and for India further confirms this analysis.

He warns that India should be the most favoured nation and not China. Pakistan is quite apprehensive about this new friendship. Even Paki taxi drivers in New York and Washington are abusing Clinton and the US for their bonhomie with India. General Pervez Musharraf briefed Robert McFarlane, former national security adviser during Reagan’s regime, to write an article in the Washington Post against Clinton’s policy on South Asia. It is learnt that Clinton had declined to meet Musharraf in New York.