As India and the United States deliberate on the whole gamut of diplomatic immunity in the wake of the Devyani Khobragade episode, S Jaishankar, the new Indian envoy, believes the broader relations between the two countries remain sound, albeit somewhat low on sentiment.
In his first public engagement since taking charge in Washington last month at the height of the Devyani row, Jaishankar dwelt on the great distance that the relationship has covered over the past decade, but felt the two can do better by appreciating each other’s interests and difficulties.
“The grand strategy underwriting our ties is fundamentally sound,” he said at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, stressing: “It needs maintenance and from time to time, an upgrade. That puts the emphasis on detailing and problem solving.”
As Jaishankar arrived at Carnegie, he was greeted by a clutch of protesters, braving the sub-zero temperature and holding “Stand with Sangeeta” signs. Demonstrating their solidarity with the maid in the Devyani row, they accused the Indian government of “shielding” Khobragade through diplomatic unity instead of facing the American trial.
Jaishankar squarely addressed the issue at his talk inside and at the subsequent Q&A. “For those of us who have devoted time and energy to building Indo-US ties, the last few weeks have been truly distressing,” he said, noting that “this situation (the Devyani episode and the chain of events following it) should never have happened”.
“But since it did, we will now have to work through this problem. That is part of the conversations underway,” he said, adding: “But what the issue does highlight is the need for greater sensitivity, for better understanding and for stronger oversight of our ties.”
Responding to a questioner, who suggested that Indian officials did not heed US warning signals on the Khobragade issue back in September, Jaishankar said the Indian side had put it to the US authorities even earlier in July that the maid issue was already under litigation in India. Whatever that happened here vis-à-vis Khobragade was “an attempt supersede what was happening in India”, he said.
On “US-India Relations”, the subject of his Carnegie address, Jaishankar dwelt on the host of positives that has been accomplished over a broad front.
At the same time, he pointed out that “relationship building is never without challenges”, noting: “Some of it is structural; the rest emanates from our different histories. The US has to overcome its inclination to view ties through the lens of alliance practices. Indians perhaps have to indulge themselves less in compulsive ambiguity.”
“Building ties requires a degree of give and take that can test officialdoms. Appreciating each other’s interests can be more difficult than we generally assume. And contrary to what many seem to believe here, domestic politics is not just the prerogative of the United States,” Jaishankar commented, in an obvious reference to American complaints about New Delhi not pushing with a new wave of economic reforms.
While blaming the economic slowdown for much of the downward sentiment on the state of bilateral relations, Jaishankar sought to stress that “geo-strategic convergence” was still the core of India-US relationship.
“Even as the U.S. recovers economically and strategically, the case for working with India has only gotten stronger,” he said, adding: “An improvement in the economic mood back home will surely lift our bilateral interactions.”