Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07CHENNAI475
2007-07-23 10:19:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Consulate Chennai
Cable title:  

Nuclear-Powered Nimitz Visits Chennai: The Only Emission Is

Tags:  MOPS MARR MNUC PREL PGOV KPAO ASEC IN 
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VZCZCXRO9648
RR RUEHBI RUEHCI
DE RUEHCG #0475/01 2041019
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 231019Z JUL 07
FM AMCONSUL CHENNAI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1084
INFO RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 2666
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI 5082
RUEHCI/AMCONSUL KOLKATA 0812
RUEHLM/AMEMBASSY COLOMBO 1341
RUEHCG/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUENAAA/SECNAV WASHDC
RHMFITT/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RHHMHAA/COMPACFLT PEARL HARBOR HI
RUYNABU/COMCARSTRKGRU FIVE DET YOKOSUKA JA
RUAYAIT/COMSEVENTHFLT NLLS YOKOSUKA JA
RHVUMTZ/USS NIMITZ
RHVWPIN/USS PINCKNEY
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 CHENNAI 000475 

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: MOPS MARR MNUC PREL PGOV KPAO ASEC IN
SUBJECT: Nuclear-Powered Nimitz Visits Chennai: The Only Emission Is
Goodwill

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 CHENNAI 000475

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: MOPS MARR MNUC PREL PGOV KPAO ASEC IN
SUBJECT: Nuclear-Powered Nimitz Visits Chennai: The Only Emission Is
Goodwill


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The July 2-5 visit of USS Nimitz to Chennai was an
overwhelming success, overcoming criticism, protests, and
bureaucratic hurdles to make an indelible impression on the
bilateral strategic relationship. Citing the incident-free shore
visits by thousands of sailors and their ready engagement in
numerous community relations projects at schools, orphanages and
tsunami-affected villages, one national newsmagazine concluded

SIPDIS
"Goodwill, clearly, seems to be the only fallout of this nuclear
warship's visit." Also significant is the estimated $1.5 million
that the visit injected into the Chennai economy, not to mention the
military-to-military engagement that was a central purpose of the
visit. Our hats are off to the officers and crew of Nimitz and its
sister ship USS Pinckney for their professionalism, hospitality,
flexibility and superb representation of the U.S. and the USN. END
SUMMARY.

--------------
Chennaiities, Media Are Awed
--------------


2. (U) The public diplomacy impact of the Nimitz visit is difficult
to overstate from both the media and people-to-people perspectives.
Nimitz literally dominated local media for more than a week and
attracted significant national attention, with positive reports far
outnumbering critical ones. The heavy community relations (COMREL)
schedule (see below) generated numerous "feel good" news stories
involving the sailors on each day of the visit. The intensity of
the coverage was, in our experience, paralleled only by President
Bush's March 2006 visit to Hyderabad.


3. (U) On the people-to-people side, the Nimitz visit brought an
unprecedented number of Americans to south India at one time.
Several contacts commented to us that the visit was a great success
simply for the fact that it was the first American event of this
scale in Chennai, south India's largest city. They noted that
American travelers tend to focus on North India, and the simple fact

that the visit happened in Chennai demonstrated U.S. interest in the
region. The sheer number and high quality of the COMREL projects
resulted in a large number of interactions between sailors and
marines and the citizens of Chennai. Over 700 crew members
participated in a total of 11 COMREL events over the course of three
days. Reports from all COMREL events indicated a high degree of
goodwill generated both from the work done as well as the
interactions between the crew and their Indian host institutions.


4. (U) The sailors' free time while on shore in Chennai generated an
estimated $1.5 million in business, pleasing vendors and local
businesses. A state government official responsible for public
order told us that the state government feels the visit went off
well, most importantly due to the lack of any untoward incidents.
"The sailors behaved well and the general public perception was
positive," according to the contact. Their incident-free
interactions with the locals provided further evidence of a
non-threatening, and in fact friendly, U.S. military that aims to
get closer to India.

-------------- --------------
Rough Seas Swamp Reception, But Pinckney Saves the Day
-------------- --------------


5. (SBU) The July 2 reception planned for on-board Nimitz, which was
to be co-hosted by Ambassador Mulford and was intended to double as
Chennai's official Independence Day event, had to be cancelled at
the last minute when rough seas made it impossible to transport the
400 guests from the pier to the carrier. With the guests already
processed through security and assembled on the pier, a significant
public relations fiasco loomed until USS Pinckney, moored at pier
side, volunteered to host the guests for tours and light
refreshments. Thanks to the flexibility and hospitality of
Pinckney's crew, the potential fiasco turned into a great success.
Ambassador Mulford informally addressed the guests using Pinckney's
public address system, and he chatted with many as they toured the
vessel. The Ambassador's formal remarks that had been prepared for

CHENNAI 00000475 002 OF 003


delivery aboard Nimitz were converted into a statement and released
to the media, receiving good coverage.

-------------- -
Bureaucracy Reacts Slowly, Then Overwhelmingly
-------------- -


6. (SBU) While the visit generated enormous goodwill, during the
set-up we experienced bureaucratic hassles typical of a local and
central government still queasy about hosting a U.S. Navy vessel. A
plethora of Indian central and state government authorities were
involved in the visit, especially for our use of the Port of Chennai
and the Chennai airport. Thanks to good pre-existing relationships
some of the entities, especially the Chennai Port Trust and the
airport authority, were willing to engage cooperatively on advance
arrangements. Others maintained a "wait and see" attitude pending
the last minute arrival of written approval for the visit from the
Ministry of External Affairs.


3. (SBU) Security arrangements were proceeding in a relatively
low-key fashion until what Tamil Nadu state government contacts
described to us as "urgent calls and written communications" from
the Ministry of Defense substantially heightened police attention
and activity, perhaps even more than called for. After the central
government intervention, which came only two days before Nimitz
arrived, the state government and other security agencies urgently
reviewed the security situation at each location where sailors were
likely to mingle with the public, including all 12 sites planned for
community relations (COMREL) projects. Very late in the process,
the state government and Chennai Police Commissioner raised security
objections about a few of the most public COMREL sites, leading us
to cancel or relocate those events. At several of the other sites,
police presence bordered on overwhelming. According to state
government sources, altogether, 6,500 police officers were deployed,
2,400 of them in plain clothes. Occasionally it seemed that the
police were more interested in watching the sailors and monitoring
and videotaping their interactions with the local populace than with
deterring any possible threats

-------------- --------------
Ruling Politicians Don't Engage; Opposition Protests
-------------- --------------


7. (SBU) The DMK political party, which governs in Tamil Nadu and
supports the ruling UPA coalition on the national level, did not
engage about the ship visit, either with us or in the media. It
seemed to take the approach, as it has on other foreign policy and
defense issues, that those are matters for the central government
rather than for the state. We suspect that the cautious DMK
leadership was happy to keep away from any political controversy or
potential incidents that could have redounded negatively. State
government officials at the political level did not participate in
any visit-related activities, and the state's Chief Secretary, the
top bureaucrat, withdrew from one of the distinguished visitor
fly-outs at the last minute.


8. (SBU) In contrast, Governor of Tamil Nadu Surjit Singh Barnala, a
central government appointee, responded warmly to the visit. He
welcomed the senior U.S. Navy leadership to Raj Bhavan, his official
office and residence, and after rough seas forced the cancellation
of the on-board reception, the Governor asked that his adult
grandchildren and senior staff be accommodated for a subsequent
tour. Captain Manazir personally arranged for their tour and
received them aboard Nimitz.


9. (SBU) Tamil Nadu's leading opposition political party, the
AIADMK, and others such as the Communist Party of India-Marxist
(CPI-M) were not reticent in voicing their opposition to the visit,
and their criticism reached the national media. AIADMK leader J
Jayalalithaa tied her criticism to the fears of radiation hazards,
while her ally Vaiko of the MDMK added that the ships' presence
would "endanger the country's sovereignty and security." With the
exception of ideologically-based objections from the CPI, most of

CHENNAI 00000475 003 OF 003


the local political criticism had more to do with political
rivalries and opportunism than with substantive issues. But several
protest demonstrations, some numbering over 1,000 participants,
gained very little traction among the general population and did
nothing to disrupt the visit or the comings and goings of sailors
and visitors.

-------------- --------------
Radiation Fears Put to Rest; Weapons Confusion Persists
-------------- --------------


10. (SBU) Not unlike media elsewhere, the Indian media thrives on
headlines and sound-bites, and it is not averse to finding
controversy even where it does not exist. Many of the early,
pre-arrival reports about Nimitz focused on its nuclear power system
and the possibility of radiation leaks. After days of reports and
discussion, the fears were largely put to rest by the effective
public affairs information from Nimitz about the U.S. Navy's
flawless nuclear power record and by helpful statements from Indian
nuclear experts (several of whom are persistent critics of the
nuclear deal) about the lack of radiation danger posed by nuclear
powered vessels. Nonetheless, Indian authorities were quoted as
saying they would closely monitor the air and sea while Nimitz was
in port.


11. (SBU) The media seemed less able to deal with our nuanced
official approach not to comment about any presence or absence of
nuclear weapons on U.S. warships. While some outlets reported the
stance accurately, others variously cited the Consulate, the
Ambassador and even Captain Manazir of the Nimitz as confirming the
presence of nuclear weapons. (It goes without saying that all hewed
strictly to our official stance.)


12. (SBU) COMMENT: There are a great many operational and logistical
lessons-learned from the Nimitz visit, which we will record and/or
communicate in other channels. Although we would do many things
differently the next time around (and we hope there will be a next
time),the balance of the July 2-5 visit is very heavily on the
positive side. Consulate General Chennai very much appreciates the
huge assistance provided by Embassy New Delhi, particularly the
Naval Attache, in supporting the visit and, most of all, the superb
performance of the men and women of USS Nimitz and USS Pinckney.


13. (SBU) Embassy New Delhi Comment: The Nimitz visit still
resonates in the central government halls in New Delhi, where the
positive impact will help reinforce the UPA government's steady
approach towards a strategic partnership with the U.S. Friends from
across the political spectrum were gleeful at the Left's failure to
spark wider opposition to the Nimitz visit. While the Indian
military has coveted our cutting-edge technology for years, the
professional, approachable demeanor of our sailors will help us
build a better partnership based on security and strategic
stability.


14. (U) This message was coordinated with Embassy New Dehli.

KAPLAN