Indian Govt. Appeases American Imperialists

The 22 million population of Iraq have colonized after a devastating war of occupation costing $75 billion by the US. Despite Rumsfeld’s statement that they have no interest to stay for long, the US is building military bases in Iraq with long-term interests. Another puppet regime like Hamid Karzai’s is waiting in the wings under the protective umbrella of hundreds of thousands of US and British forces.

The month long war attracted wide spread condemnation by the world people including American people, before and after the war. Millions demonstrated against the US and in support of the Iraq people. In India too from Mumbai to Guwahati and from Tamilnadu to Kashmir there were protest demonstrations against the war of aggression by the US against the Iraq nation. In some parts, like Kerala there was an effective boycott of US and British goods.

While people stood by the oppressed Iraqi nation, the Indian government took more than fifteen days to pass a mere resolution, that too not mentioning the aggressors, when the war on Iraq was coming to an end. While the whole country was condemning the ghastly manslaughter perpetrated by the butchers Bush and Blair on the Iraqi masses, the NDA government showed its servility towards the US imperialists by not even conceding to use the word “condemn” in the resolution. Robert Blackwill, the US ambassodor to India, felt sympathy for the NDA government that the Vajpayee government was under tremoundous pressure. A worthy certificate for a loyal servant!

The Indian government has a history of supporting wars of occupation by the imperialists. India was never non-aligned in its true sense of the term till now. Starting from Czeckoslovakia, it supported the occupation of Afghanistan by the then Soviet Union and the occupation of Kampuchea. The Indian government was exposed as a stooge of the Soviet imperialists. Starting from the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Indian Ruling classes inclined towards the US imperialists. They not only supported the US led war of aggression on Iraq in 1991, but, all through the decade of oppression on Iraq, through the UN, India supported the US. In 1991 the US asked for overflight of its military air craft and later, for re-fuelling facilities. The Janata Dal Government- IK Gujral was then External Minister- conceded the first one, while taking care not to make it public, and the Chandra Sekhar government agreed to the second. It supported the war on Afghanistan in 2001. Not only that it joined the international coalition against terrorism and it avowedly supported naked aggression on Afghanistan nation.

While it was the most unpopular war in modern history, only the likes of Subramanian Swamy and Togadia could support the US led war on Iraq. The NDA, while opposing the war, chose not to annoy the “strategic ally”. It resisted vehemently not to use the word “condemn” in the proposed resolution by the Indian Parliament. While hundreds and thousands were being massacred by the raining of the deadliest bombs by the US and British forces, the Indian government did not choose to condemn this, but tried to divert the attention of the Indian people against Pakistan with war-mongering statements to for pre-emptive strikes.

The NDA’s opposition to the war was quite formal from the beginning. The US took justification in the theory of the right to “pre-emptive strikes” justifying thereby their horrendous war against Iraq. The Vajpayee government bought this theory from their masters shamelessly. Was it not defeating its own logic while opposing the war and applying its logic to conduct the war of aggression on Pakistan?

The so called “middle-path” was nothing but a shameless compromise and appeasement policy towards the imperialist monsters. While deploring the war and merciless killings the Indian government allowed recruitment of personnel from India who would directly serve the coalition forces. The Economic Times reported:

“India has suddenly become a major supplier of manpower for back-end and supply functions for the US military forces in Kuwait. Mass recruitment is currently on in Mumbai for a whole range of military support staff — ranging from chefs, kitchen assistants, service assistants, camp supervisors,.. bus drivers. The assignment has generally three months.”

If this open collaboration by allowing recruitment is being done, who would know how the NDA would have co-operated clandestinely.

While the brazenness with which the US went to war is difficult to support in India for the most servile compradors like the NDA too, without the back up of the UN, political and economic interests lie in being mild towards the US’s most naked aggression

America’s Trojan Horse in NAM

On March 16 the police in Kuala Lumpur 270 IT professionals, mostly from AP. Of them 195 were taken to the police station, many hand-cuffed. They were treated like criminals, many were thrashed. 4 were still in police custody. Commerce minister Arun Jaitley and textile minister, Kashiram Rana, raised the issue with the visiting entrepreneur development minister. C.Naidu also wrote a letter to Mahatir Mohammad. Malaysia’s Foreign minister said that the police acted on complaints about people without documents.

But, it was said to be a way of hitting back at India for short-circuiting several Malaysia-backed proposals at the recent NAM summit in Kuala Lumpur. India had opposed Malayasia’s demand to set up a permanent secretariat, instead of a rotating one, for NAM. It also rejected Mahatair’s insistence on naming the US as “aggressor” in the resolution on Iraq and introducing a clause in another resolution stating the “root cause”. (Outlook, March 24th 03)

What is the “national interest” in taking the so-called middle path? For the comprador their class interests is the “national interest”. These vultures are ready to plunge on devastated Iraq to work for “rehabilation and reconstruction”. Their mouths are watering when they think of the contracts which would be blessed by their US masters. Hence they should not displease their masters. See what the CII president Anand Mahindra says as reported by Hindu (dated May 2nd, 2003):

“India’s proximity to Iraq (read proximity to US) is likely to bring a bonanza for the corporates, which expect to offer the most competitive manufacturing capabilities, services and man power for the post war reconstruction effort.

Looking forward to these opportunities, the new President of the Confederation of Indian Industries(CII), Anand Mahindra, has commended the government’s diplomacy in not condemning the US war on Iraq outright, since it is likely to yield rich dividends ultimately for Indian corporates.”

Compare this, to the sentiment of a cine director’s against the war and its perpetrators:

Turning down an invitation to the 51st National Prayer Breakfast with George Bush, Mahesh hat wrote: “It occurs to me that participation in such sessions with the President is to condone the Christian Bush’s terrorism of demonic proportion around the globe.”

After all this servility and appeasement for a getting few crumbs, still the Defence Minister George Fernades has the temerity to speak against the US. “It is now proved that Washington was not right when it charged Baghdad with the stockpiling of WMD. The war in Iraq is continuing since 1991 with the US attacking the country on a regular basis.” Saying that lakhs of Iraqi men, women and children had died because of lack of food and medicine in the past 10 years. when this war had entered its 30th day, it does not make sense. Well, Fernades, are you ready to demand to try Bush-Blair company as war criminals! Is your government ready to annul diplomatic ties with the US and Britain? Are you ready to recognise the coalition forces as occupying forces and demand their withdrawal?

US military Operations In India

Ironically, while the Iraq war was on, elite special forces of the US were on a three-week secret operation in India — at the invitation of the government of India. That too, the "intense" three-week counter-insurgency exercise took place in the sensitive jungles of the North East, where the nationality movements are seeking their freedom from the jack-boots of the India State.

This was not only a training programme, but, more importantly, a practice for joint operations in counter-insurgency. In other words the Indian government plans to invite the US forces into the country, to set up base, and jointly act against the revolutionary and nationality forces in South Asia. No wonder the US in its latest report put India as the number one country affected by terrorism — for this creates the necessary environment for direct US intervention in the country, in the name of countering ‘terrorism’. Unlike Iraq though, where US forces had to fight their way in to the country, here they will enter at the invitation of the government.

The exercise which went on from April 4-26 was codenamed ‘Balance Iroquois 03-1’ by the Americans and ‘Vajra Prahar’ by the Indians. It was held at the Indian Army’s Counter-Insurgency & Jungle Warfare School at Vairengte, Mizoram.

A plethora of comprador intellectuals suggest to the Indian government to keep the national interests as paramount, to work for Post-War construction activity, forgetting what all happened to the trampling of the Iraqi nation and attempts to colonize it. Forget the puppet regime and establish diplomatic relations and get some left over contracts. After all, the US imperialists too visualise India’s stupendous role in the post Saddam’s regime.

JN Dikshit, ex ambassodor to various countries like, Pakistan, Srilanka.. also suggests that in the post-war scenario, as India needs to be in the good books of the US, we need to be practical. How? “The US, assuming the right to bring about regime changes, negates the right of people of different counties to decide on their own government. The US reserving the right to pre-emptive action against weapons and defence capacities of foreign governments negates the fundmental soverign right of Nation-states to decide autonomously on their own defence and military capacities. The US, institutionally negating the UN role in this case relegates the UN to being just a debating society shorn of responsibilities often ensuring collective international peace and conflict resolution. This is not just Pax Americana but the prospects are US imperium- a prospect looked upon with concern by important countries like France, Germany, Russia, China and Iran.

Then should we confront the US imperum? No, no.. “ The remedy does not lie in confronting the US but in establishing broad political and strategtic understanding with those powers to temper a new hegemony in the making.”

This is a classical version of a comprador intellectual suggesting how to serve the imperialiasts and serve their own interest.

The Indian ruling-classes appeasement towards the US aggressors has now been duly rewarded. Over the corpses of thousands of Iraq people, under US occupation, the Indian compradors have already been gifted contracts of a huge Rs. 3000 crores. For this purpose an office has been opened in New York with the liklihood of gaining of further Rs. 2000 crores — i.e. a total of a gigantic $1 billion in contracts. The US throws crumbs to their loyal accomplices.

The symbiosis of the comprador bureacratic bourgiosie and imperialists is crystal clear. Appeasement is the continuation of politics by other means for the compradors.