People and their leaders in India and the region need to listen carefully to what the outgoing ambassador of the United States to India has said on the eve of his departure. It is interesting that he chose to talk about his disappointments rather than his achievements. He has identified two key areas of disappointment: The continuing terrorism “emanating” from Pakistan, and the unrealised potential of the US-India business relationship. This, however, should not be allowed to diminish the contribution Robert Blackwill himself made to further Indo-US ties, which have continued to flourish, especially since the Kargil War. He lost no opportunity to push things along, at times rather robustly. There is little doubt that US and Indian interests converge across a broad spectrum of issues and differences, where they exist, are caused essentially because of different cultures and capabilities.In the context of terrorism from across the borders, the promises made to the US by the Pakistani leadership and, in turn, those made by the US to India are well known. These promises, in fact, stopped a war last year; and many in this country feel let down that the assurances conveyed at that point were not translated into reality. Every Indian, therefore, shares Blackwill’s disappointment on terrorism not coming to an end. As a senior adviser and confidant of the US president, he has every reason to say that the promises made to the US president ought to be kept. But he is realistic enough to know that, historically, the Pakistani leadership has rarely honoured their commitments. This means that Washington would need to look beyond mere promises made by Pakistan to actual performance.As regards the second concern, opinion shapers and policy makers on both sides of the hemisphere need to accept, and try their best to rectify, the problem of mindsets where lack of mutual trust and understanding between the US and India continue to dog relations. The Indian elite has not totally got rid of the suspicions and apprehensions of the sole superpower and the historical baggage of the East India Company having ruled the country for a century and a half. And nor, it seems, have the Americans — deeply involved as they are in their own global role — tried hard enough to understand Indians and why they take the positions they do. This is why the type of study undertaken by the Pentagon on perceptions about the Indo-US defence relationship becomes so important. At the same time, building closer business ties also require us to stop comparing India with China — or Ireland, for that matter. India has its own objective realities, with all their strengths and weaknesses. Understanding this will go a long way in putting the relationship between two of the world’s largest democracies on a surer footing.
