Volume 6, No. 9, September 2005

As the international crisis deepens and imperialist contention intensifies the US is vigorously pushing to build its bloc for the coming battles. Since 9/11, US unilateralism and the theory of "those not with us are against us", is nothing but the philosophy of bloc formation. Of course, at the international plane the process of bloc formation is still going on and none have consolidated. Strategic and military alliances are the essence of this process; which goes one step beyond the deepening of economic ties/dependencies. While some countries like Israel have always been part of the US alliance many others are sought to be drawn in. Frantic efforts are being made by the US in Central Asia, West Asia and South and South-East Asia. For the entire Asia region India is being seen as an important tool of US’s geo-political strategies. In Central Asia, Russian assert-ion over the past two years has seen the US being pushed back to some extent, and in Afghanistan their rule hardly extends beyond Kabul. In West Asia the US is bogged down in Iraq due to the heroic Iraqi resistance. In Latin America the US’s attem-pts to extend NAFTA to the entire sub-continent has not materialized. In such a scenario India gets more prominence in the US’s geo-political strategic plans.

India is important for various reasons. First, due to its size it has a sizable market. Even if a mere 10% of the top population is considered this is more than the largest country of Europe. Second, it has a huge army which can be used as cannon fodder by the imperialists in all parts of the globe. Third, it has a high amount of educated and scientific personnel (English speaking) which can be used as cheap labour for US Empire-building. And lastly, it has a long history of a servile comprador class that can act as faithful tools of the imperialists; particularly the past 15 years of the history of globaslisation in this country has shown that whichever the party in power the capitulation towards the US has gone apace without any significant shifts. These are the ‘rich’ credentials of the Indian rulers and as a reward for their servility Manmohan Singh and his gang were given a rousing welcome to the White House.

The recent Manmohan Singh visit to the US was merely the culmination of an entire process of greater and greater capitulation to the US, that has been going on since 1991 and which took a leap with Clinton’s visit to the country. Particularly it is a continuation of the secret Strobe Talbott-Jaswant Singh talks that took place behind the backs of the Indian people during the BJP-led rule. It is said that it was during this March that the terms of the agreement were struck with the visit of the US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, to this country. The nature of the agreements struck, earlier by Pranab Mukherjee on defence (see earlier issue of People’s March), and now by the PM of the country, has taken the country a significant step forward drawing it deeper into the US camp. Much of the present agreements now signed were agreed upon during the Jaswant Singh-Strobe Talbott talks, exposing the BJP’s so-called opposi-tion as nothing but a hoax. Vajpayee’s continuous so-called attacks on the agree-ment is nothing but a fraud as the basis for these agreements were set in his regime.

Till now the CPM has made a show of opposing such deals; now for the first time, in its latest politburo meeting they have openly said that they are satisfied with the PM’s explanation given in parliament on the visit. In fact they have never opposed the deals, only made some noises to fool the masses. This is their standard refrain. All parliamentary outfits are in line to develop a closer US-India nexus.

Now let us come to the present deal. Together with the Defence deal signed a month earlier these agreements have been all-encompassing. They cover such strategic areas as nuclear and geo-political, as also in industry and finance, agriculture and even education. In Manmohan Singh’s high-flying visit he was not only accompanied by most top ministers but also chiefs of business houses and top bureaucrats. It was infact two chief cops from both sides who quietly (secretly) worked on the deal — the National Security Advisors from both sides. The deals were struck in such secrecy that even top Congressmen were unaware of what had been agreed upon.

It was a total surrender to the US. Without any reciprocatory assurances from the US the PM virtually signed on the dotted line handing over India’s nuclear sector for US control and domination. While the US continues to proliferate nuclear weapons and has not built a nuclear reactor for energy production since the 1970s, it has demanded (and India has capitulated) that India not to test any nuclear weapons and build nuclear energy plants on a massive scale. The level of commitments made to the US on this issue was of a most humiliating nature and acts to further infringe on the sovereignty of the country. The agreement for nuclear energy must be seen as part of the Bush administrations plans to push nuclear energy on a big scale in the US itself. Faced with depleting oil stocks, and serious problems in most oil producing regions of the world (West Asia, Central Asia, Venezuela, Russia) it is seriously considering the nuclear alternative to supplement energy sources. The fact that this will be producing huge quantities of unmanageable radio-active waste is being ignored.

The Agreement signed has committed India to: " reciprocally" segregating "in a phased manner" the country’s military and civilian nuclear facilities; "voluntarily" planning its civilian nuclear facilities under International Atomic Energy Safeguards; signing and adhering to the Additional Protocol with respect to civilian nuclear facilities; working with the US to help conclude a Multilateral Fissile Cut Off Treaty (MFCT); continuing with stringent non-proliferation export control policies; adherence with the guidelines of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), etc. These latter agreements are aimed to stop other countries from making nuclear combustible uranium, thorium, etc and allowing the US to maintain its monopoly. Most of these are a product of the Jaswant-Talbott talks during NDA rule.

Top nuclear scientists have themselves criticised the agreement saying that separation of the civilian and military nuclear facilities is impossible and if it was to be done it would be prohibitively expensive. They reacted in anger and disbelief of what had been signed away. So, in other words, the PM has de facto handed over not only the "civilian", but also the "military" nuclear facilities for UN (read US) inspection. Besides, though India is not a signatory of the NPT (Nuclear non-proliferation Treaty) it has agreed not to test any nuclear weapons. It has also gone one step further in falling in line with the US’s long-standing demand for accepting the MFCT.

By this agreement the US has virtually given the Indian rulers an Israel-like status turning a blind eye to its nuclear power. From criticizing it not being a part of the NPT it has turned to favouring its nuclear programme, only bringing it under US control as a counterweight to China.

In addition it has agreed to become the dumping ground for the dangerous US nuclear energy reactors creating a huge market for a highly capital intensive method of electricity generation. Disposal of nuclear waste from these reactors is a major environmental hazard and till today the imperialist have not found a way for the safe disposal of the radio-active waste. Just from the one Tarapore plant India produces 60 tonnes of nuclear waste each year. Now, as per the agreement, India seeks to expand its nuclear energy power from the earlier 6,000 mega watts to a huge 40,000 mega watts. One can imagine the extent of nuclear waste that will be generated. This nuclear energy entails high capital costs and is hi-ghly risky, when solar energy is more viable.

So, now India will become a huge market for the US’s outdated nuclear reactors. It will also become increasingly dependent on the US for its entire fuel resources.

The PM, in his July 18th speech, has promised to join with the US in exporting ‘democracy’ to the rest of the world. In a separate document entitled "Indo-Global Democracy Initiative" the two countries agreed to "assist other societies in trans-ition seeking to become more democratic". The "Initiative" further commits the two countries to "reaffirming the (April 2005) Community of Democracies Santiago Commitment and agreeing to jointly implement the Santiago commitment including with other states and civil society to promote democracy and development". The Bush Manmohan statement have committed themselves to jointly promote "stability, democracy, prosperity and peace thorough the world". India also committed to support the US-proposed UN democracy Fund.

This Initiative has very serious implications as it, in essence, means ganging up with the US in it aggressive policies and war activities against other countries of the world as all these are being done in the name of promoting democracy. On the basis of this agreement India would have to send troops to Iraq (which the US has been demanding from the very start) as that war of aggression is also taking place in the name of ‘democracy’. So also in Afghanistan or anywhere else in the world. And if this document is read together with the defence agreements signed by Pranab Mukherjee it virtually entails drawing India fully into the US camp.

Also this agreement will be used against the people of the world in the name of fighting terrorism. The two leaders resolved: "To combat terrorism relentlessly. They applaud the active and vigorous counter-terrorism cooperation between the two countries and support and support more international efforts in this direction. Terrorism is a global scourge and the one we will fight everywhere." The stooge Manmohan spoke of "Bush’s stead-fast determination and leadership in meet-ing international terrorism" adding that "there must be zero tolerance of terrorists"

So pursuing the Taliban in Afghanistan, or the Islamic regime in Iran, or the regime in North Korea or the new republics in Central Asia, etc all become a part of the US’s drive for ‘democracy’ and countering terrorism, which now the Indian rulers are committed to join.

For the first time ever top business houses were part of the official delegation of the PM comprising the major chiefs of the comprador big bourgeois housed like, Ambani, Tata, nrayan Murty, Premji, Birla, etc. For the first time ever a CEO (the heads of these business empires are called Chie Executive Officers)Forum has been formed comprising ten CEOs from Indian and US big business each. The purpose of this Forum is clear: to facilitate the greater flow of US investment in India and tightening the stranglehold of US finance capital over the Indian economy. The CEO’s Forum openly states that it will take issues like the removal of blockages on trade and investment. The forum agreed that India needs to modernize infrastructure and enhance investment climate. Bush went out of his way to speak of the India-US economic dialogue to focus high level attention on trade, finance, investment and the environment and the enormous value in setting up the CEO’s Forum. In essence, this will act as a powerful lobby to push US business interests in India.

In agriculture they decided to further push genetic varieties in India in the name of deepening "knowledge exchange, research and training".

In the field of education it has sought to open out the Indian market to the US universities. The PM has agreed to make available lectures and resource materials of top US universities to those in India.

It is clear that the Indian rulers are, with each passing day, taking the country and its people deeper and deeper into the clutches of the US imperialists. This is having disastrous affects on the lives of the people of the country. The country is being driven to rack-and-ruin, while a handful of elite make fortunes eating off the crumbs from the imperialist table. Our traitorous rulers are going all out to sell off everything to the imperialists, particularly the US, mortgage the country’s defence apparatus to the US, hand over the entire Indian assets, money, raw materials — everything, including its water, to the imperialists. All the parliamen-tary parties collaborate in these traitorous schemes.

If India is to be saved from total slavery the people have to rise in revolt. They should not get taken in by the mock opposition of the CPI or CPM or the NGOs. It requires a mass upsurge to be able to reverse the policies of the imperialists and their agents in this country. Just a month earlier we have seen how the administration and the police in Haryana acted as the tools of a Japanese firm, just as they had done during British times. So also in Rajasthan. They butcher the Naxalites just as the British butchered the likes of Bhagat Singh and others. For Manmohan and his gang it is not zero tolerance to terrorism, but zero tolerance to any form of resistance to their unjust policies. But, it is the oppressed masses of this country that will find the way out to genuine freedom.

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