Tuesday, September 11, 2007
A symbol of the turn-around in India-U.S. Relations
I've been reading a lot about the military exercises involving India, the U.S., Japan and Australia, code-named "Malabar" in the Bay of Bengal. When one reads about the Kitty Hawk and the Seventh Fleet in the Bay of Bengal, one cannot but be amused. The last time the Seventh Fleet was in the Bay of Bengal was when Nixon ordered the fleet to steam in to try and intimidate Mrs. Gandhi (he really did pick the wrong person to try to intimidate) over the 1971 war. That move led to disastrous India-U.S. relations for the next 20 years. The same seventh fleet in now involved in war games with the Indian Navy, signaling the strengthening of a relationship that could potentially keep the straits of Malacca open, in addition to being a counter-weight to Chinese naval ambitions. The symbolism, however, is not lost on anyone.
