Saturday, July 28, 2007

tightening the noose: Nicholas Burns on the US-India 123 Peaceful Nuclear Cooperation Agreement

jul 27th, 2007

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Ram Narayanan

http://www.state.gov/p/us/rm/2007/89559.htm

US STATE DEPARTMENT

On-The-Record Briefing on the Status of the U.S.-India Civil Nuclear
Cooperation Initiative and the Text of the Bilateral Agreement for
Peaceful Nuclear Cooperation (123 Agreement)

R. Nicholas Burns, Under Secretary for Political Affairs

Washington, DC
July 27, 2007

View Video

(10:25 a.m. EST)

UNDER SECRETARY BURNS: Good morning. As you know, President Bush just
issued a statement commending the work done to complete the U.S.-India
Civil Nuclear Accord, the so-called 123 Agreement. And as you also
know, about 90 minutes ago, Secretary of State Rice and the Indian
Minister of External Affairs Pranab Mukherjee issued a joint statement
attesting to the fact that the United States and India have completed
successful negotiations on this bilateral agreement. This is also
known as the 123 Agreement.

I'd like to say a few words today about the agreement. I'd like to try
to put it into context for you, as to why it's important in the
development of our relationship, and then try to sketch out the
outlines of that relationship.
In my view, this is perhaps the single most important initiative that
India and the United States have agreed to in the 60 years of our
relationship. It is indeed historic. It's already become the symbolic
centerpiece of a growing global partnership between our two countries.
And it reaffirms the commitment to cooperate in civil nuclear trade
that was first agreed by President Bush and Prime Minister Singh on
July 18th, 2005, here in Washington, and then reaffirmed by them at
their summit in New Delhi on March 2nd of 2006.

...

yes, it's the biggest trap the idiot indians have fallen into in 60 years.

i was telling an IFS man this the other day: the indian negotiators
don't understand game theory, and also they confuse the means and the
end.

the end here is energy independence, but during the negotiations the
indians have become convinced that the end goal is the 'nuclear deal'.
it isn't. it is only one of the means. but the indians will concede
everything to make the 'nuclear deal' happen.

this is like the negotiations with pakistan over the cessation of
terrorism, which is the end goal. but partway through, the indians
become convinced that the 'indo-pak bus service must start' is the
goal. it isn't. it is only one of the (alleged) means. but the indians
will concede everything because 'the bus service must go on even if
terrorists are mowing down people left right and center'.

game theory is the answer. also, balls. and love for the nation.

alas, india's negotiators are unstructured, unsure of themselves, and
probably 'bought' with american money.

i warned some time ago when the indian side was getting to be packed
with malayalees that some catastrophe was going to happen. one was
nepal. the second is this nuclear deal.

remember: krishna menon, k n panikkar, m o mathai. india gives away
tibet and kashmir, which we'll suffer from forever.

a k antony, shiv shankar menon, vincent george, hormis tharakan, m k
narayanan, a k nair. india gives away nepal and the hard-won
independent nuclear capability.

i tell you, we are one screwed-up country full of people who are
'friends of china', 'friends of america', friends of godman
ratzinger'. anybody who is a 'friend of india' is immediately
demonized as a 'hindu communalist fascist' and hounded relentlessly.
why is this a country of mir jafars and jaichands? i despair.

6 comments:

san said...

I admit, I'm concerned that the agreement may block our ability to do more N-Tests in the future, as well as prevent us from building more military breeder reactors.

karyakarta92 said...

A sad development for all Indian patriots. Why do the Americans perceive India as a potential threat to be contained by all means ? What did India/Hindus ever do to threaten America ? What do the Yanks gain by emasculating the Indian nuclear deterrent while leaving Pakistan's rogue Islamic bomb intact ? How can any GOI just sign away our deterrent while the Pakis continue building their new enrichment facility.
There is'nt even a parity between India & Pakistan, in terms of deterrence - because the Pakis don't even need to test their proven Chinese designs.

I'm surprised that Dr. Anil Kakodkar succumbed to this lemon of a deal. Is it a coincidence that the 123 agreement was negotiated right around the time Dr. Kalam had to demit office as Head of State ?

Is there *nothing* the Indian Parliament and Judiciary can do
to safeguard national security interests.
And, the Indian armed forces who have the final responsibility of protecting the nation - will they simply acquiesce to this deal ?

Shikhandi MMS has sold away the nation's freedom that was secured by the blood of innumerable Indian patriots over 1300 years.

Will the Indian people ever wake up to this reality, preoccupied as they are with tabloid trivia ?
I'm waiting for the Times of India & Indian Express etc to run a story about *what cuisine* was served during the negotiations.

MMS, MK Narayanan,
K. Subhramanyam, Shyam Saran,
Shiv Shankar Menon, Sonia Gandhi & whatever other traitor is responsible for this sellout of national security would be tried for treason and brought before a firing squad in any other self respecting country.

Enough of this bloody democracy for our nation & Enough of this bloody non-violence crap.

These have only brought upon calamitous results for the nation.

Uddharet said...

The USA used the "bait and switch" stratagem, and Maino Mohan Singh's government swallowed hook, bait and sinker.

karyakarta92 said...

I'll volunteer an answer to one my own questions above, i.e. why would the Americans want to emasculate India's nuclear deterrent ? And I know it may sound crazy......
Perhaps, they're aware of demographic trends in India and are perhaps, taking pre-emptive action to keep India's deterrent at a primitive, manageable level so that an Islamic India with nukes will not constitute a credible threat against them.

There is an eery historicity to this event. Didn't Christopher Columbus originally set sail with his armada to navigate to India, the country he'd heard was fabulously rich, which according to the Europeans was populated by idol worshipping savages ?
Columbus, due to his navigational disabilities ended up "discovering"
America and the American "Indians"
suffered for it. India, which was already enduring islamic tyranny then, was spared the European onslaught for few centuries more.

It looks like the original Columbus mission has been accomplished by his American heirs.

As a graduate student in the U.S at the time, I had tears of joy/pride when the Shakti round of atomic tests were conducted in May, 1998. Today, I have a sinking feeling in my stomach.

Unknown said...

Why is Kakodkar singing differently now? Why is BJP not saying a thing? When this kind of calamity strikes, they have to do something drastic, such as resigning en masse from the parliament.

This only proves one thing. Indians (majority of them at least) can be trusted to sell their country. Patriotism does not mean a thing to them. Such people deserve worse fate than death. And that is what awaits them in the long run. We, as a nation, cannot justify our existence.

Still, I have not lost hope, because without hope, I can’t live. I have faith in our courts and to some extent in the US politicians.

Or is there something we as a group can do, without waiting for something to turn up?

DarkStorm said...

Perhaps, they're aware of demographic trends in India and are perhaps, taking pre-emptive action to keep India's deterrent at a primitive, manageable level so that an Islamic India with nukes will not constitute a credible threat against them.
=================

Exactly my thoughts, Karyakarta..

Islamic population is growing a good 15% higher rate than Hindu population and by the turn of the century, India may well be a mullahcracy...

Americans are just nipping a potential islamic bomb in the bud!!

India neither wants to threaten America, nor America has any reason to be threatened by India..