Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06NEWDELHI8511
2006-12-26 11:50:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy New Delhi
Cable title:  

SENATOR SPECTER MEETING WITH P.M. SINGH

Tags:  PREL ENRG ETRD ETTC EAGR IR IS IZ JO KN 
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 NEW DELHI 008511 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/26/2016
TAGS: PREL ENRG ETRD ETTC EAGR IR IS IZ JO KN
KNNP, LE, PARM, PGOV, PK, CH, IN
SUBJECT: SENATOR SPECTER MEETING WITH P.M. SINGH

NEW DELHI 00008511 001.2 OF 003


Classified By: A/DCM John Davison for Reasons 1.4 (B, D)

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 NEW DELHI 008511

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/26/2016
TAGS: PREL ENRG ETRD ETTC EAGR IR IS IZ JO KN
KNNP, LE, PARM, PGOV, PK, CH, IN
SUBJECT: SENATOR SPECTER MEETING WITH P.M. SINGH

NEW DELHI 00008511 001.2 OF 003


Classified By: A/DCM John Davison for Reasons 1.4 (B, D)


1. (C) Summary. Visiting Senator Arlen Specter (R - PA)
called on Indian P.M. Manmohan Singh December 24. Both
agreed on the historic impact of the U.S./India civil-nuclear
agreement on bilateral relations. P.M. Singh offered the
caveat that the significance will be historic once the 123
Agreement is finalized, and Senator Specter urged Singh to
expedite 123 negotiations. Other topics of this very cordial
discussion included bilateral economic ties, China, Iran,
Syria, Iraq, the Middle East and outsourcing of Pennsylvania
jobs to India. End Summary.

--------------
Gratitude for Civil-Nuclear Agreement
--------------


2. (C) During a December 24 meeting with Senator Arlen
Specter, P.M. Singh expressed his strong appreciation to
President Bush and especially to the Republican leadership of
Congress for their efforts to garner strong bipartisan
support for passage of the civil-nuclear legislation. Singh
said that the impact of the agreement will be historic once
the follow-on 123 Agreement is finalized, which Senator
Specter urged be done as quickly as possible. Senator
Specter agreed the accord demonstrated the great promise of
the agreement for stimulating economic ties and the Indian
development. He noted that the US "liked what it saw" in
India, especially in contrast to authoritarian China, and he
stressed the importance of Indian democracy "in this troubled
world." For his part, Singh described the improved
relationship between our two democracies as a "far-reaching

signal to humankind in the 21st century." Singh also pointed
out other examples of growing ties, citing the good works of
the CEO Forum and cooperation on clean coal technology.
Singh was particularly keen to emphasize the importance of
the Agricultural Knowledge Initiative, which he said offered
India the opportunity of a "second wave" of its Green
Revolution.

--------------
"What if?" on Regional Nuclear Proliferation
--------------


3. (C) Senator Specter alluded to an earlier visit he made
to India in 1995, when he had transmitted an offer by
then-P.M. Rao to then-Pakistani P.M. Bhutto to make the
sub-continent a nuclear-free zone (an offer which Bhutto
subsequently rebuffed). Specter sought Singh's views on how
the region might be different had Bhutto taken the offer
seriously. Singh chose to respond by pointing out that
Pakistan was not India's only neighbor which possessed
nuclear weapons. Regretfully, other neighbors such as China
and further away, North Korea, were nuclear weapons states,
and thus, a purely sub-regional solution to eliminate nuclear
weapons would not be salable to Indian voters.


4. (C) That noted, Singh stressed that there was no dearth
of opportunities for dialogue with Pakistan, and to that end
he had met four times with President Musharraf since becoming
P.M. Normalization of ties with Pakistan remained a top
priority for his government. Likewise, Singh wanted to
improve ties with China, despite a long-standing border
dispute. Later in the meeting, however, he criticized
Chinese influence in Africa and the Middle East, and said he
doubted that China would ever support a solution in Darfur.

--------------
Musings on Iran, Syria and Hamas
--------------

NEW DELHI 00008511 002.2 OF 003




5. (C) Senator Specter then noted his appreciation for
Indian votes at the IAEA on Iran, and he sought Singh's views
on Syria and the Middle East. Singh recalled his public
statements that India does not want Iran to become a nuclear
state. As a signatory to the NPT, Iran had legitimate rights
but also obligations. Singh worried, however, that events in
Iraq and Lebanon have increased Iran's self-confidence.
Between the leadership of Iran and Syria, Singh thought that
President Assad would be easier to influence. He said that
the assessment of his special envoy to Syria was that Assad
seeks a modus vivendi with the U.S, but that such an
arrangement is complicated by the investigation into Syria's
role in assassination of former Lebanese P.M. Hariri. On the
Israeli-Palestinian issues, Singh noted India's historic
close ties to Israel, but he added that since the death of
Arafat, India had not yet built similar close ties to the
current Palestinian leadership, especially from Hamas.
Still, Singh said he agreed with an assessment given to him
by former President Clinton on how power was sobering.
Eventually, he thought Hamas would have to learn that it
needs to behave differently in governing than it did while in
opposition.

--------------
Outsourcing and Next Steps on Trade
--------------


6. (C) Senator Specter mentioned how impressed he was with
the development he had witnessed in early legs of his visits
to the southern cities of Cochin and Bangalore. Still, he
wanted to pass on concerns from some of his Pennsylvania
constituents about outsourcing of jobs from the U.S. to
India. Singh noted that one of the many positive aspects of
the civil-nuclear deal would be increased opportunities for
U.S. firms such as Pennsylvania-based Westinghouse to compete
for major nuclear energy deals. Specter, smiling, reminded
Singh that General Electric also had operations in Erie,
Pennsylvania. Singh also acknowledged, however, that India
still could strengthen its market economy by focusing more on
removing bureaucratic obstacles. Specter asked if India
could develop at the same pace as China, whose leaders he
acknowledged could at times be quite ruthless in their push
to develop. Singh answered that while reforms might be
slower in a democracy, but that when change occurs, it was
more durable.

--------------
Parting Thoughts on Iraq and Afghanistan
--------------


7. (C) Singh's observations on democracy led Senator Specter
to muse as to why democracy seemed to face such challenges in
Russia, Iraq and Afghanistan. Singh recalled what he said he
had earlier told President Bush: that developing democracy
also depended heavily on such factors as culture and
civilization. He stressed India's support for President
Karzai, and noted that India already contributed 700 million
dollars in development assistance to Afghanistan. The world
has to stay the course in Afghanistan, which faces continued
challenges by the Taliban who are using Pakistani territory
against Karzai. In Iraq, it had been a mistake to dissolve
state institutions such as the army, and rebuilding them
would be a long-term process. A precipitous U.S. departure
would have undesirable consequences, as would dividing Iraq
into three parts. Jordanian King Abdullah had recently
visited India and was "worried" about the regional situation.

--------------
Meeting Attendees

NEW DELHI 00008511 003.2 OF 003


--------------


8. (U) USG: Senator Arlen Specter, Ambassador David Mulford,
Scott Boos, Legislative Assistant for Specter, and John
Davison, Economic Minister Counselor. GOI: Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh, and Joint Secretary Americas, Ministry of
External Affairs, S. Jaishankar.


9. (U) This message was not cleared by Senator Specter.

MULFORD