Indian official tells Singapore Newspaper
India would support the establishment of a South Asian parliament - something
along the lines of the European parliament and will not support the establishment
of an independent Tamil state in Sri Lanka.
Jairam Ramesh, chief of the economic department of the Indian National
Congress stated last week during an interview with Singapore's Straits Times.
The newspaper says that the 50-year-old Tamil Brahmin is among the three or
four people who plotted the "stunning defeat" of the ruling National Democratic
Alliance, led by the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in last month's
general election. He is also a key adviser to numerous governments of India's 29
states and seven federal territories.
Ramesh is also described as close to two people by The Straits Times: Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh, and Mrs Sonia Gandhi, the head of the Congress
Party. Mr Ramesh speaks with remarkable clarity and eloquence - he is really
enunciating what is on the minds of those two extremely powerful people, the
newspaper says.
In a wide ranging interview about India's foreign policy under "Singh and Gandhi",
Mr Ramesh outlined several highlights of the ruling coalition's foreign policy:
Accelerated efforts to bring about a rapprochement with Pakistan, with which
India has fought - and won - three wars since both countries gained
independence from Britain in 1947. 'Formal and informal lines of communication
will be ongoing, especially on the Kashmir issue,' he said. Kashmir is claimed by
both countries.
Intensification of political and economic ties with China. Mr Ramesh pointed out
that this year, bilateral trade is expected to rise eight-fold to US$10 billion
(S$17.3 billion). He disclosed that India recently received a proposal from China
to establish an economic partnership between its Yunan province and Thailand,
Myanmar, Bangladesh and North-east India, which would create jobs in
languishing parts of these regions.
India will not support the establishment of an independent Tamil state in Sri
Lanka. 'While we are all for the protection of the rights of the Tamil minority, India
will not back the break-up of Sri Lanka,' he said. 'India wants involvement in the
peace talks between the Sri Lankan government and Tamil rebels, and we
support a federal Constitution with more power devolving to regions. But we won't
support any territorial break-up.'
The resolution of problems such as the trade deficit between India and
Bangladesh, and India's 'concern that Bangladesh serves as a haven for terrorist
groups'. Mr Ramesh acknowledged that India and Bangladesh have a 'very
serious problem' with the trade deficit, which the latter resents: each year India
buys US$100 million worth of goods from Bangladesh, which buys US$1 billion in
Indian goods. And, of course, there's the ongoing problem of river-water
distribution.
Accelerated economic and political cooperation with Nepal. Mr Ramesh sees the
populous Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar forming stronger ties with
bordering Nepal. 'Without cooperation with Nepal, UP and Bihar won't be able to
effectively address their long-term poverty problems,' he said. These states
account for 60 per cent of South Asia's poor; the three rivers that flow through
them all have their upper catchments in Nepal. 'Deforestation in Nepal has
devastating consequences... these rivers provide sustenance but they also
cause sorrow through flooding.'
Dealing with the nexus between Nepal's increasingly strong Maoists and Naxalite
guerillas in India. 'Unfortunately, many Maoists draw sustenance from Indian
territory... there's also a very strong nexus between Maoists and Naxalites,
particularly in tribal India.'
India and Iraq. 'The previous government was about to send Indian troops to
Iraq,' Mr Ramesh said. 'That will not happen while the United Progressive Alliance
(UPA) government is in power.'
Mr Ramesh also said the UPA would favour more attention to regional water and
environmental-protection projects, and support a nuclear non-proliferation pact
between India, China and Pakistan.
'And while this may sound romantic, we would also support the establishment of a
South Asian parliament - something along the lines of the European parliament,'
he said.
The Singapore newspaper also reports that, India is proposing economically
integrating parts of its 3.2 million sq km of land with countries like Singapore.
Mr. Ramesh told the Straits Times that in particular, the resource-rich but
economically struggling seven north-eastern states of Arunachal Pradesh,
Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura - need to develop
with the cooperation of South-east Asia, to which they are geographically close.
"These states have biodiversity, hydropower, oil, gas and coal - but they are
waiting for integration into South-east Asia's economy. Indeed, there's no reason
why the seven states cannot remain politically united with India but also
economically integrated into South-east Asia's flourishing economies", said the
new chief of the economic department of the Indian National Congress.