India–US Relations in the Age of Uncertainty: an Uneasy Courtship

Downloaded by [New York University] at 19:57 02 December 2016 India–US Relations in the Age of Uncertainty In the initial phase of the Obama administration, India’s ruling class and strategic community formed a perception that the spirit of strategic partnership between the two countries might be diluted on account of China looming large in the priorities of this administration. Despite occasional hiccups in their relationship, this perception was overshadowed by the administration’s recognition of India’s role as counterweight to China in the Asia-Pacific region. This book addresses and re-evaluates the perceptions, policies and perspectives of public policy makers and bureaucratic elites in both India and the US in setting and articulating the tone, tenor and substance of the multi-faceted ties between the two countries. The scope of the book is not exclusively limited to the bilateral relationship in the critical areas such as the Indo-US nuclear deal, defence, security, and strategic partnership. Its concerns and ramifications are much wider in global and regional contexts, covering security architecture in the Asia-Pacific region, the interface between terrorism and weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), China as a factor in India-US relations, and the fallout of the New Delhi-Washington partnership on South Asia. B.M. Jain is a former Senior Fellow at the Indian Council of Social Sciences Research (ICSSR, New Delhi) in India, and was Visiting Professor in the Departments of Political Science at both Cleveland State University and Binghamton University, USA. Previously he was Professor of Political Science at the University of Rajasthan at Jaipur, India, and Editor-in-Chief of the Indian Journal of Asian Affairs. He has been a visiting scholar at numerous universities and research institutes in the USA, Europe, and Asia. Downloaded by [New York University] at 19:57 02 December 2016 Rethinking Asia and International Relations Series Editor – Emilian Kavalski, Australian Catholic University (Sydney) This series seeks to provide thoughtful consideration both of the growing prominence of Asian actors on the global stage and the changes in the study and practice of world affairs that they provoke. It intends to offer a comprehensive parallel assessment of the full spectrum of Asian states, organisations, and regions and their impact on the dynamics of global politics. The series seeks to encourage conversation on: • what rules, norms, and strategic cultures are likely to dominate international life in the ‘Asian Century’; • how will global problems be reframed and addressed by a ‘rising Asia’; • which institutions, actors, and states are likely to provide leadership during such ‘shifts to the East’; • whether there is something distinctly ‘Asian’ about the emerging patterns of global politics. Such comprehensive engagement not only aims to offer a critical assessment of the actual and prospective roles of Asian actors, but also seeks to rethink the concepts, practices, and frameworks of analysis of world politics. This series invites proposals for interdisciplinary research monographs undertaking comparative studies of Asian actors and their impact on the current patterns and likely future trajectories of international relations. Furthermore, it offers a platform for pioneering explorations of the ongoing transformations in global politics as a result of Asia’s increasing centrality to the patterns and practices of world affairs. Most recent titles 1 India and the Responsibility to Protect Alan Bloomfield 2 Managing Global Risks in the Urban Age: Singapore and the Making of a Global City Yee-Kuang Heng Downloaded by [New York University] at 19:57 02 December 2016 3 The China-Japan Border Dispute: Islands of Contention in Multidisciplinary Perspective Edited by Tim F. Liao, Kimie Hara and Krista Wiegan 4 Risk State: Japan’s Foreign Policy in an Age of Uncertainty Edited by Sebastian Maslow, Ra Mason and Paul O’Shea India–US Relations in the Age of Uncertainty An uneasy courtship B.M. Jain Downloaded by [New York University] at 19:57 02 December 2016 First published 2016 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2016 B.M. Jain The right of B.M. Jain to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data Names: Jain, B.M., author. Title: India–US relations in the age of uncertainty : an uneasy courtship / by B.M. Jain. Other titles: India–United States relations in the age of uncertainty Series: Rethinking Asia and international relations | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2015037935 Subjects: LCSH: United States–Foreign relations–India. | India–Foreign relations–United States. | World politics–21st century. Classification: LCC E183.8.I4 J274 2016 | DDC 327.73054–dc23 LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015037935 ISBN: 978-1-4724-3895-9 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-315-58833-9 (ebk) Typeset in Times New Roman by Out of House Publishing Downloaded by [New York University] at 19:57 02 December 2016 To My Parents Downloaded by [New York University] at 19:57 02 December 2016 This page intentionally left blank Downloaded by [New York University] at 19:57 02 December 2016 Contents Preface viii Acknowledgements xii List of abbreviations xiv 1 India and the United States: “complex interdependence” 1 2 India–US relations during the cold war era: an overview 32 3 India–US civilian nuclear energy cooperation 54 4 India–US defence and security relations 81 5 India–US strategic dialogue 112 6 India–US relations: the China factor 140 7 India–US relations: challenges, opportunities, and future directions 159 Select bibliography 180 Downloaded by [New York University] at 19:57 02 December 2016 Index 191 Preface This book has grown out of a research project on India–US strategic partnership in the twenty-first century. I carried out this project as a Senior Fellow of the Indian Council of Social Sciences Research (ICSSR, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, New Delhi) at the Institute of Development (IDS), Jaipur, India. Its central objective was to test the hypothesis that the analytical framework of “complex interdependence” was useful and appropriately relevant to the study of the multifaceted relationship between India and the United States. Perhaps, this is the first independent volume on India–US relations brought out so far in which the theory of “complex interdependence”, developed by Robert A. Keohane and Joseph Nye, has been applied to examine myriad dimensions of Indo-US relations given the complexity of their bilateral ties, rooted in Cold War geopolitics as well as asymmetric power capabilities. Besides, I have introduced a few other important concepts like geo-economics, geopsychology, cooperative partnership, and “alliance of interests”. Given the space constraint, it was not possible to elaborate these concepts, although I very much desired to do so. As per the chapter scheme, I have devoted a comprehensive chapter to the historical background of India–US relations, beginning from the pre-Cold War period, through the Cold War period to the end of the Cold War, and the demise of the Soviet Union in December 1991, in order to illustrate how and why India–US relations have been profoundly complex and uncertain. It is a truism that India’s non-aligned ideology was a principal variable behind estrangement between the two great democracies throughout the Cold War era. Geopolitical divergences between them led to the superpower Downloaded by [New York University] at 19:57 02 December 2016 rivalry in South Asia. Interestingly enough, contradictory pulls and pressures were visible in the New Delhi–Washington relationship, as manifest during the Kennedy and Nixon administrations. It ought to be underlined that the Kennedy administration (1961–1963) not only accepted India’s leading role in the non-aligned world but also wanted to project India as a model of economic development with American assistance in Third World countries. On the con- trary, the Nixon administration’s (1969–1974) deeply entrenched apathy and disdain towards India resulted in the nadir of relations between two countries. Preface ix After the end of the Cold War, ideology was virtually replaced by a sheer pragmatism, as is manifest in military, security, and strategic cooperation between India and the United States. A dramatic transformation took place in their relations in the aftermath of terrorist attacks on the United States on 11 September 2001 (9/11). With little choice, the Bush administration not only lifted sanctions on India, imposed by the US in 1998 following India’s multiple nuclear tests, to muster India’s support for its global war on terror, but also sought to engage India as a global power. Military and strategic partnership expanded and deepened dramatically between the two countries. This was reflected in the nuclear deal between the two countries. Due to personal efforts of President George W. Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the Nuclear Suppliers Group, NSG-45, granted waiver to India, thus bringing India’s nuclear apartheid to an end once and for all.

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