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New
Delhi, 02 October 2002
On
17 Sep 2002 President George Bush signed and released the
‘National Security Strategy of the United States of America.’
This 35-page document spells out the current thinking of the
President and his recipe of the future policy of the USA vis-à-vis
the rest of the world.
We
present below relevant extracts from this document as they relate to
India, which make interesting reading.
(The
full text may be viewed at www.whitehouse.gov/nsc/nss.pdf)
...“The
United States has undertaken a transformation in its bilateral
relationship with India based on a conviction that U.S. interests
require a strong relationship with India. We are the two largest
democracies, committed to political freedom protected by
representative government. India is moving toward greater economic
freedom as well. We have a common interest in the free flow of
commerce, including through the vital sea-lanes of the Indian Ocean.
Finally, we share an interest in fighting terrorism and in creating
a strategically stable Asia.”
...“Differences
remain, including over the development of India's nuclear and
missile programs, and the pace of India's economic reforms. But
while in the past these concerns may have dominated our thinking about
India, today we start with a view of India as a growing world power
with which we have common strategic interests. Through a strong
partnership with India, we can best address any differences and
shape a dynamic future.”
...“In
South Asia, the United States has also emphasized the need for India
and Pakistan to resolve their disputes. This administration invested
time and resources building strong bilateral relations with India
and Pakistan. These strong relations then gave us leverage to play a
constructive role when tensions in the region became acute. With
Pakistan, our bilateral relations have been bolstered by Pakistan's
choice to join the war against terror and move toward building a
more open and tolerant society. The Administration sees India's
potential to become one of the great democratic powers of the
twenty-first century and has worked hard to transform our
relationship accordingly. Our involvement in this regional dispute,
building on earlier investments in bilateral relations, looks first
to concrete steps by India and Pakistan that can help defuse
military confrontation.”
...“We
are attentive to the possible renewal of old patterns of great power
competition. Several potential great powers are now in the midst of
internal transition -- most importantly Russia, India, and China. In
all three cases, recent developments have encouraged our hope that a
truly global consensus about basic principles is slowly taking
shape.”
...“The
United States has undertaken a transformation in its bilateral
relationship with India based on a conviction that U.S. interests
require a strong relationship with India. We are the two largest
democracies, committed to political freedom protected by
representative government. India is moving toward greater economic
freedom as well. We have a common interest in the free flow of
commerce, including through the vital sea lanes of the Indian Ocean.
Finally, we share an interest in fighting terrorism and in creating
a strategically stable Asia.”
...“With
our long-standing allies in Europe and Asia, and with leaders in
Russia, India, and China, we must develop active agendas of
cooperation lest these relationships become routine and
unproductive.”
...“Economic
growth should be accompanied by global efforts to stabilize
greenhouse gas concentrations associated with this growth,
containing them at a level that prevents dangerous human
interference with the global climate. Our overall objective is to
reduce America's greenhouse gas emissions relative to the size of
our economy, cutting such emissions per unit of economic activity by
18 percent over the next 10 years, by the year 2012. Our strategies
for attaining this goal will be to:
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remain
committed to the basic U.N. Framework Convention for
international cooperation;
-
obtain
agreements with key industries to cut emissions of some of the
most potent greenhouse gases and give transferable credits to
companies that can show real cuts;
-
develop
improved standards for measuring and registering emission
reductions;
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promote
renewable energy production and clean coal technology, as well
as nuclear power -- which produces no greenhouse gas emissions,
while also improving fuel economy for U.S. cars and trucks;
-
increase
spending on research and new conservation technologies, to a
total of $4.5 billion -- the largest sum being spent on climate
change by any country in the world and a $700 million increase
over last year's budget; and
-
assist
developing countries, especially the major greenhouse gas
emitters such as China and India, so that they will have the
tools and resources to join this effort and be able to grow
along a cleaner and better path.”
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