By Nusrat Mirza
Chief Editor, Interaction
In the last days of US President Donald Trump, the US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, and US Secretary of Defence, Dr. Mark Esper, had a meeting with their Indian counterparts, Minister of External Affairs, Dr. K. Subrahmanyam, and Minister for Defence, Rajnath Singh, the so-called 2+2 meeting, ended as expected with the two sides signing the last of the “foundational agreements”, the Basic Exchange and Co-operation Agreement or BECA.
According to the terms of the agreement, the two countries will share classified geo-spatial data and strategic intelligence and give India access to US satellite and sensor data. India could use that data, for instance, to more accurately target enemy assets and track targets in the Indian Ocean. In other words, India can now ensure that its missiles are more accurate against targets in Pakistan and China (or, for that matter, in the Himalayas), and track Chinese ships and submarines in the Indian Ocean.
After coming Joe Biden as President of USA on 21st January 2021, the foreign Minister of America talking with his counterpart Jaishankar said USA and India are facing same kind of Threats and both countries jointly shall counter the challenges that are being faced by them. Now here, it means that USA is referring to China and Russian Threats and Indian is including the threat from Pakistan endorsed by USA. This is very alarming for all the three countries.
To be clear, the BECA was not the only item on the 2+2 agenda. As Mr. Pompeo said “We have a lot to discuss today, from co-operating on defeating the pandemic that originated in Wuhan, to confronting the Chinese Communist Party’s threats to security and freedom, to promoting peace and stability throughout the region. While the Covid-19 pandemic may have been discussed, however, the security issues that relate to China, including the BECA, dominated the discussions.
By signing the BECA, India has joined Australia and Japan, its Quad partners, in accessing US military data. That has the effect of strengthening the loose alignment, even coalition, that was first suggested by then Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, and which subsequently consisted of Australia, India, Japan and the United States.
After the Rudd Government withdrew Australia from the arrangement so as not to annoy China, its largest trading partner, New Delhi also put the Quad on the back burner and cut Australia out of its Malabar naval exercise that it conducts with Japan and the US. It also did so because it, too, did not wish to antagonize China.
It was likely that lack of synergy on the joint Indo-Pacific strategy that media reports claimed aimed to contain China that led China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, to comment that ‘they are like sea foam in the Pacific or Indian Ocean’. It is ironic, therefore, that it is China’s belligerence that has caused the Quad to be revived. China has caused each of the Quad’s members to take note of its belligerent attitudes towards them.
Beijing has angered Washington because of its mercenary approach to trade and intellectual property issues, New Delhi due to its territorial encroachments, the same with Tokyo and Canberra by its commercial and trade retaliations to the former’s call to investigate the cause of the Covid-19 pandemic, its operations to influence Australian politics and its efforts to enhance its own influence in Australia’s zone of influence in the South Pacific.
It is that commonality, together with the perception of the four Quad democracies that China is working to introduce its version of authoritarianism as a substitute for liberal democracy that has caused the Quad to be revived. That outcome has led Mr. Wang to backtrack on his former statement, claiming now that the United States is attempting to ‘build an “Indo-Pacific NATO”’. Implicit in that charge, albeit unstated, was the rider, “to contain China”.
Not only this, NATO of 30 countries has being to work actively by organizing a conference of Defense Ministers assuring them that this time NATO countries will be given right to share as there exists a threat of Russia and China to which European countries considered that it old wine in new bottle and do not consider Russia as their enemy because in spite that on USA initiatives, the European countries did not buy the oil of Russia but Russia did not retaliate militarily except boycotting the fruits from Poland.
There is no threat from China also. China is cooperated with the world during Covid-19 threat and also environmental situation of the world while America isolated itself during both the calamities. China was blamed of economic abuse to which Investors rejected by saying that they access to Chinese Market offshore and Onshore. India has gone too close to USA that it boycotted the Iran and Russian Sea drill on 16 and 17th February 2021 in spite assurance to join the drill.
USA is trying to restore its primacy after losing its honor and respect among its own allies and trying to carbon copy of Obama policy but things have changed and world has slipped from the hands of USA. Its own allies don’t trust USA. American transatlantic policy is destructive for te Asia and Pacific Ocean countries.
Pakistan feels threatened with Indo-US policies as the technology and access to satellite information given India shall be used against Pakistan. India has never used USA equipment or in information against China but against Pakistan. That is why Pakistan is trying to take help mainly from China and Russia if it could give coming out from the influence of India, The Economic War with China is a war against Pakistan as well. USA will meet with great setback as Indian and Chinese trade relations will grow one day.
Indian target is Pakistan in all respect. Any help of any country to strengthen India means a blow to Pakistan. One can judge from any angle that Indian target is Pakistan. One can take the example of NGOs in western countries numbering hundreds, all against Pakistan.