Indira Gandhi desired better Indo-US ties

WASHINGTON: In spite of her "almost pathological need" to criticise America, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi desired to see an improvement in Indo-US relations on a "more equal" basis, then Secretary of State Henry Kissinger had told President Gerald Ford in 1974.

"I met this morning in the royal splendour of the former British Viceroy's palace in New Delhi with Prime Minister Gandhi in private and with Foreign Minister (Y B) Chavan for a brief word in private," Kissinger said in a memorandum put up for the President by his National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft, recently-released State Department documents show.
   
The talks were "frank but very warm" and it was evident that "they are very pleased by the visit and our recognition of India as an important country in the world and the predominant power in the sub-continent," said the former top official of Richard Nixon and Ford Administrations.
   
"Despite Mrs Gandhi's almost pathological need to criticise the United States, she, too, desires to see relations between us improve on this new and more equal basis," Kissinger had wanted to be conveyed to the President of his meeting with Gandhi in October 1974.
   
He said he had raised the concerns over India's nuclear policy, telling Gandhi "very frankly" that "their nuclear explosion was a bomb no matter how India described it" and her undertaking not to produce nuclear weapons did not mean the next government would not do so.
   
Kissinger told Gandhi that the US was not interested in "recriminations" but in how to prevent further proliferation.
   
"By our second meeting, she seemed to have reflected on this and asked if we had any specific proposals. I have asked (then Ambassador Daniel P) Moynihan to follow up this possible opening with her," he said.
   
"The Foreign Minister has reaffirmed that India will not develop nuclear weapons, and this point will be included in the joint statement. In addition, at the Foreign Minister's request, I stated in my speech tonight that we take this pledge seriously, which makes their commitment even more binding," Kissinger said.
   
India was eager to see "our new relationship" transformed into specific, material forms of cooperation and welcomed the formal establishment this afternoon of a US-India Joint Commission, the top US official had noted.
   
On Pakistan, he maintained that India's pre-occupation on American supply of lethal weapons is "obsessive".
   
"I tried to reassure them and place the matter in perspective by stating that we will not become part of an arms race in the sub-continent and will never engage in any action which would threaten India's superior military relationship with the other countries of the sub-continent.
   
"In private with Mrs Gandhi, I made the point that at most what would be involved would be limited cash sales to Pakistan and that she should reflect on the risk that, if frustrated on conventional arms purchases, Pakistan would be under even greater pressure to go nuclear," Kissinger said.
   
"I hope that the dialogue I began today will make this issue a less overshadowing one in India's perception of our relationship," he had said.
   
Kissinger had also assured India that "our relations with Russia and China do not in any way impinge upon India's interests but I warned them of the long-term danger of the so-called non-aligned appearing to seek a confrontation with the developing countries at a time when the latter are experiencing difficulties and less able to ignore provocation".