India and the US seem to have moved closer than ever in the last couple of days or at least that was the impression given. Hours before US Secretary of State John Kerry held talks with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in New Delhi, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, on a visit to Washington, inked the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) with his US counterpart Ashton Carter. The logistics pact allows both sides to use each other’s assets for repairs and replenishments. Does it also allow the US to use India’s military bases? Notwithstanding Parrikar’s clarification, some have raised concern that it could well be the case.
The controversial agreement has not come out of the blue. It has been in the pipeline since the Vajpayee era. By signing the deal, India has definitely not given a blank cheque to the US. In fact, America has entered into LEMOAs with several countries but has agreements on using military bases with only some of its allies. LEMOA doesn’t make it mandatory for India to oblige the US and every request will be processed based on its individual merits. India is already a major defence partner of the US and LEMOA makes defence ties between the two sides all the more stronger. On the other hand, John Kerry’s tough talk on Pakistan is nothing new. His statement that, “we cannot and will not make distinctions between good and bad terrorists” and advice to Pakistan to not let terror groups use its soil have been repeated ad nauseam over the years. To interpret his remarks as a shift in US policy could be not only hasty but also off the mark.
Having said that, Kerry’s visit to India and Parrikar’s trip to Washington are significant in the evolving geopolitical situation in the region, particularly with Pakistan keen on stirring trouble in Jammu and Kashmir and China turning aggressive in the South China Sea. They are a signal that America and India are on the same page.