COVER
STORY
Obama’s Sojourn
Symbolism or Substance
By Manish Kumar [ Erricson India, Bangalore]
The media space has been abuzz with speculations and
expectations regarding the upcoming visit of the US President
Mr. Barack Obama. High hopes are riding on the new found
bonhomie of the the pluralistic democracies. But the build up
of such high hopes often overshadows the pragmatic views on
international diplomacy. Our relations with the US goes back
to 1949 when Mr. Nehru made a visit to the US, which was
followed by the high-profile visit of the US President
Eisenhower in 1959. But both these visits failed to yield any
landmark results. The Cold War ensured the Pakistan would
continue to get the US assistance and funds in spite of our
vehement opposition.
Taking a closer look at the prevailing ground realities, one
should view the summit with cautious optimism with get
over ambitious for results. Both the countries wish to engage
themselves on the issues related to bilateral trade, climate
change, defence and civil nuclear sector. But the road ahead is
not smooth. There are numerous stumbling blocks which
might preclude any significant outcome, if not outrightly
stymie the summit itself. TRIPS, BIT and civil liability for
Nuclear Damage Bill are such issues which would require
strong deliberations.
The Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Bill remains the core
issue of discussion. The US companies( which aim for a large
pie in nuclear energy sector) are wary of the clause in the
Bill ,which makes the supplier directly liable for any nuclear
mishap. The clause 46 of the Act relates to open-ended
liability which puts unlimited liability on the supplier for
any nuclear mishap. The US has been pushing for
implementation of 123 Agreement which has been under
freeze owing to the aforesaid Bill. It is still to be seen whether
the issue will be resolved through the mechanism of insurance
consortium
TRIPS and BIT are the other issues on which the two
countries are yet to reach a consensus. Even though the
differences over IPR is being resolved through a working
group on Intellectual Property, no headways seems to have
been made yet. The strong lobbying by the US pharma
companies has constantly been goading New Delhi to amend
its IP laws. The US Trad Representative's Annual Special 301
Report continues to keep India on “ priority watch list” for
its lax IPR laws. India wants to resolve these differences over
IPR through bilateral talks rather than being subjected to any
unilateral action. The US has also expressed in no unclear
terms its unequivocal opposition to India on exclusion of IPR
and taxation from the ambit of India-US BIT.
In the wake of climate change agreement between the US and
China, the US expects India to take affirmative actions on
climate change. This in spite of the fact the recently concluded
COP 20 at Lima had only asked government all over to
present
their
Intended
Nationally
Determined
Contributions(INDC) in Paris this year. The Lima accord to
which India is a signatory had not asked for any details of
how it plans to cut emissions. New Delhi has thereby rightly
maintained its commitment to rights of poor countries and
also the longstanding principle of common but differentiated
responsibilities. India seeks more and funds and technological
assistance form the developed nations for mitigation of
climate change.
The contentious issues not withstanding, India remains a key
ally in Obama's Asia Pivot. A sustained and healthy relation
between the two nations are not only symbiotic but also
critical to peace and stability in the strife stricken West and
Central Asia. Both the nations need to create long term
cooperative strategies that accommodates each other's
interests. A synchronized policy on Asia is the way forward.
US needs to build confidence by assuaging India's concerns
on Afghanistan and Pakistan. The geopolitical, geoeconomic
and realpolitik scenario presents before the two nations, a
great opportunity to take the relations to greater heights, this
must not to lost to domestic politics or compulsions.
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