India, Iran, and the US

Last week the US Ambassador David Mulford warned India that a landmark deal on civilian nuclear cooperation would die in the US Congress if Delhi doesn’t back a UN motion against Iran. The deal has generated quite a bit of opposition in the Congress to begin with, the opposition stemming from India’s refusal to sign the NPT; Indian refusal to back the UN motion would certainly make it that much more difficult to convince a reticent Congress. Regardless of the validity or merits of the threat, or even the actual outcome in the US Congress, the public warning in and of itself is likely to make India balk.

Indo-US relations have only recently grown warmer after years of wariness. India has global ambitions, ambitions that it deems perfectly legitimate given its size, location, population, and more recently, rapid economic growth. Like most countries, the ambitions and self-assessment of strength are somewhat inflated. Having policy decisions dictated by the Americans is seen as an affront, it wounds national pride and makes Indians across the political spectrum prickly.

Indian foreign policy is built on the bedrock of third world solidarity and non-alignment. While priorities and attachments have shifted to take into account post cold war realities, the country still labors under the policies and ideals formulated by Nehru. India’s decision to support an earlier resolution against Iran was heavily criticized by the leftist parties in the ruling coalition, and by the Hindu right wing opposition. Supporting the UN motion will certainly bring more criticism, and given the public warning, charges of caving in to US pressure.

India’s reluctance to endorse UN action against Iran is not just a product of some feel-good third world solidarity policy. India is keen to maintain support in the Islamic world, support that it sees as a bulwark in its long running rivalry with Pakistan. Moreover, India needs oil and gas, both of which Iran has a plenty. Despite these reasons, India may have been tempted to support UN action against Iran (as evidenced by its earlier vote at the IAEA) but the public warning from Washington will make it tough to do so.

Upate:
India voted to refer Iran to the UN Security Council. Only Syria, Cuba, and Venezuela voted against the motion.

Indian Communists call for a debate in the parliament to discuss India's decision to support the the motion.

India-US nuclear deal runs into trouble.

Tags:
India, Iran, IAEA, Nuclear