Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
other US bilateral relationships that have been deemed important, even 'special'.
Here one thinks, among others, of Washington's ties to the United Kingdom and
to Israel. And judged by this standard, one again cannot help but be impressed by
the limited nature of US-India ties.
What, historically, has made a relationship 'special' for the United States? In
virtually every instance, agreement upon a strategic agenda or vision has existed.
In most cases, a common security threat has furnished the glue in America's
'special relationships'. The perception of a shared threat has then promoted close
collaboration in the strategic and defense spheres, including integrated planning,
joint training and operations, and the provision of sophisticated US military
technology. Several (though not all) of Washington's closest partnerships have
extended this technology sharing into the missile and nuclear fields.
Intelligence cooperation has been another distinguishing characteristic of
America's most intimate friendships. Special relationships between countries or
governments are usually marked as well by warm personal ties, starting at the top
but running throughout the bureaucracy. These close personal links facilitate the
development of informal, back-channel avenues of communication and ensure a
continual back-and-forth that characterizes and sustains the special quality of
these bilateral partnerships. Finally, special relationships usually exist not only at
official levels, but also at the popular level. Absent widespread emotional ties,
feelings of kinship (literal or figurative), or a sense of common enterprise, no
relationship between two nations will long be viewed as special.
It is not at all clear that any of these characteristics are to be found in US-India
relations at present, or can be expected to develop beyond a fairly rudimentary
state in the near future. The attention that high-level visits from American officials
receive in India suggests they lack the routine character one would expect in a
special relationship. The inattention similar visits from senior Indian officials
receive in Washington suggests the same thing.
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And notwithstanding the
dramatic change in the American conception of India and Indians—as high-tech
entrepreneurs have shoved aside earlier images of destitute beggars—India has a
long way to go before it achieves a standing in the American mindset
comparable to that held by Britain in the 1940s or 1950s, or that enjoyed by
Israel among influential segments of American society today.
The Road Ahead
In a whole host of ways, this is a healthier, more collaborative and mutually-
beneficial relationship than Washington and New Delhi have seen in many
years, if ever. An important shift has taken place in American thinking about
India and its place on the world map. For a growing number of
Americans, including many senior officials, India is no longer merely a South
Asian country, but one with a reach and a role extending well beyond the
