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Jaswant’s Riyadh visit : Engagement with Saudi Arabia |
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After looking away from each other for almost two decades, the purpose of the visit of the External Affairs Minister, Mr. Jaswant Singh, to Saudi Arabia [details last week] was to pick up the pieces of bilateral relationship. The result was that his “pilgrimage” to the desert kingdom far exceeded expectations.
In undertaking the first-ever visit by an Indian Foreign Minister to Saudi Arabia, India focussed on gaining three important outcomes - re-establishment of channels of communication, finding an institutional framework for a sustained engagement, and defining a political framework for bilateral relations. Mr. Singh’s visit realized all these and some more. His visit has now reopened high level contacts between the two sides. Hopefully, there will be an early date for a return visit by the Foreign Minister, Prince Saud al Faizal, and work will begin in India to receive the Crown Prince himself. The reactivation of the Indo-Saudi Joint Commission and the agreement on frequent contacts between the two Foreign Offices, reached during the visit of Mr. Jaswant Singh, now institutionalises cooperation between the two countries.
The understanding between Mr. Singh and the Saudi leadership that the security of the subcontinent and the Arabian peninsula are inseparable and their joint rejection of violence and terrorism have provided a new template in which future political and security cooperation could be developed diplomatic sources said. India as the second largest Muslim country into he world had thus far not taken the kind of interest it should have in forging bonds of friendship with the Arabs, who tend to get influenced by Pakistan’s anti-India rhetoric. Improved bilateral ties with the big and small Muslim countries would help India present its side of the case more effectively than it has at Islamic conclaves dominated by Pakistan. During his visit, Jaswant Singh also discussed joint initiatives for combating global terrorism and drug trafficking. Hopefully, in due course, India would take up the issue of madrasas having become recruitment and training centres for implementing Islamabad’s agenda of causing internal strife. Evolving an effective mechanism for enduring regional energy, security too was discussed by the two sides. The visit also helped remove misgivings about India’s stand on the Palestinian issue.
After the military coup Pakistan has lost its pre-eminent position in the Saudi kingdom. Riyadh wants to shed the image of the patron-in-chief of Islamic terrorism and would rather like to be recognized as an evolving centre of an information technology-driven economy. India can indeed play a major role in making the kingdom step into the exciting new world without the baggage of bigotry and religious orthodoxy.
Despite the neglect of each other, economic interaction steadily moved upwards. Indian energy imports from Saudi Arabia and the remittances from the expatriate labour to the Kingdom now totalling nearly 1.5 million have pushed the economic content of bilateral relations to nearly $6 billion. The Saudi economic reforms are now opening up new opportunities for trade and investment. The emerging professional middle class and entrepreneurs are also looking at India for cooperation in knowledge-based Industries. On the issue of economic cooperation between India and Saudi Arabia, there was a broad agreement on the need to expand the area beyond the field of hydrocarbons. A meeting of the Joint Commission would be convened soon and working groups set up in specific areas. IT, knowledge-based industries and pharmaceuticals were new areas of cooperation.
In his address to the Saudi businessmen, Mr. Jaswant Singh invited the Kingdom “to join India in a partnership that will take our ancient relationship to new heights where we jointly endeavour to combat extremism, strengthen the regional security system, reconcile differences through dialogue and engagement and promote bilateral relations.” Mr. Singh used this opportunity to spell out a blunt and unambiguous message on the issue of Pakistan’s involvement in terrorism. He told the members of Saudi Chamber of Commerce and Industry that India rejected all attempts to cloak the mediaeval barbarism of terrorism in the veneer of Jihad. The Minister said, it as a travesty and a negation of the great tenets of Islam. He said, it was necessary for Pakistan to create a suitable environment for a dialogue by demonstrating its commitment to existing bilateral agreements.
Talking to newsmen earlier, he sought Saudi Arabia’s cooperation with India to combat extremism, strengthen the regional security system and reconcile differences through dialogue and engagement saying both countries had a common interest in ensuring regional security and promoting peace and development.
Mr. Singh, however, refused to disclose whether he discussed the issue of funding of terrorist organisations from Saudi Arabia or what role Saudi Arabia could play to influence Pakistan and the Taliban to refrain from their activities in Kashmir. He also sought to allay fears about India’s missile programme which, he said, was not in violation of international laws. He said, there was no aggressive content in it. The Minister also sought to address the concerns of the Arab world, about India’s stand on the Palestinian question and the growing friendly relations between India and Israel. Denying that India’s close relations with Israel had created prehensions, he said, New Delhi’s stand on the Palestinian issue had been appreciated during is discussions with Saudi Arabia. In fact, he said, it was felt that India could play a more purposeful and moderating role to influence Israel. Its relationship with Israel, he said, was in no way in conflict with its relations with the Arab nations.
Mr. Jaswant Singh rejected Pakistan’s contention that his maiden visit to Saudi Arabia was a motivated one to weaken and undermine the traditionally friendly and close relations between Islamabad and Riyadh. He told newsmen that his visit to Saudi Arabia “stands on its own” and “for anyone to conceive that it was directed against a third country is to belittle the wisdom of Saudi Arabia and completely misread India’s intention in this regard.”.
The special relationship between Riyadh and Islamabad through the Cold War and beyond has been important for both political and religious reasons, but as the centre of terrorism has shifted to the Taliban in Afghanistan, Riyadh has been taking another look at its patronage of Islamist groups.
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