It is failed foreign policy.It is failed diplomacy yet again!Bangladesh set on fire to inject unrest in India!Amnesty fears attacks on Bangladesh Hindus!
ভোট ছাড়াই মহাজোট সংখ্যাগরিষ্ঠ?
সারা দেশে জামায়াতের সকাল-সন্ধ্যা হরতাল আজ
সহিংসতায় নিহত আরও ১১
Palash Biswas
Sorry to communicate all of you very late in the night,almost in the early morning.It is very grave.The government of India is caught unaware that the prolonged turmoil in Bangladesh threatens the security of India.It is prolongued unrest all the way.You may remember,I have been warning.With the recent execution of the war crimes convict, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) leader Abdul Quader Mollah, the hopes for a political reconciliation in Bangladesh have died down, said British weekly The Economist. "With him (Mr Mollah) died the hopes thatBangladesh might come to ... central office, rights to hold rallies and processions sound reasonable. Equally pressing are the demands of the AL that includes withdrawal of blockades, shutdowns and avoid creating unrest, said the English daily of the Saudi Kingdom.
Molla had been found guilty in February by a much-criticised domestic tribunal of having been a leader of a pro-Pakistan militia that fought against the country's independence and killed some of Bangladesh's top professors, doctors, writers and journalists. Fears that the execution could spark further unrest, in a country where political violence is intensifying in the build-up to deeply divisive elections, were soon realised as the Islamists rioted in street battles in towns and cities.
Mullah, a senior leader of Bangladesh's largest Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami, was convicted on five counts of murder and genocide by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), a domestic court set up three years ago. The hanging marks a watershed in the country's short but often bloody ... but the negotiations suggest they may consider rescheduling the polls. But the entire negotiating process, fragile as it is, could go completely off the rails if the protests over Mullah's hanging reach the intensity of February's unrest.BBC reports.
In its reaction to the execution of Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh leader Abdul Quader Molla, Foreign Office Friday said that it was not Pakistan's policy to interfere in the affairs of any other countries, Geo News reported. "Pakistan, however, has noted ... leaders for war crimes. Fears that the execution could spark further unrest, in a country where political violence is intensifying in the build-up to deeply divisive elections, were soon realized as the Mollah supporters rioted in street battles in towns and cities.
Indian diplomacy is a failure from the beginning.It is responsible for the Himalayan blunder which could not be rectified till this date.India as a nation is seized withing just because of its foreign policy and a sustained failure diplomacy People`s republic India has been a failure to defend the minorities across the border since the transfer of population at the time of partition.It failed to resist sustained persecution of minorities in East pakistan,Bangladesh,Pakistan and Srilnka and always paid very heavily.We may not get rid of insurgency and terror strikes just because we failed as a nation to protect the minorities within and across the borders time and again.
I am very sorry it is happening once again.The Parliament is rocked in constnat noise created just for nothing. Coincidentally,the parliament is in the session.
Coincidentally,it is historical fact that indian military intervention by Mrs Indira Gandhi did contribute decisively to liberate Bangladesh and it is also coincidental while we celebrate the victory of the Bangladesh Liberation war,entire Bangladesh is set on fire by those forces against whom the liberation war was fought and won.
It is tragically ironical that present Indian leadership fails to understand the gravity of the situation.
বাংলাদেশের বর্তমান পরিস্থিতিতে ভূমিকা নিতে যুক্তরাষ্ট্রের ওপর চাপ তৈরির চেষ্টা করছে ভারত। গতকাল শুক্রবার কলকাতার আনন্দবাজার পত্রিকায় অগ্নি রায়ের 'বাংলাদেশ নিয়ে ভারতের চাপ আমেরিকা'কে শীর্ষক প্রতিবেদনে এ কথাই তুলে ধরা হয়েছে।
প্রতিবেদনে বলা হয়, বাংলাদেশ নিয়ে হোয়াইট হাউসের অবস্থানে হতাশ সাউথ ব্লক। পরিস্থিতির গুরুত্ব বিচার করে, কোনো আড়াল না রেখেই সেই হতাশার কথা যুক্তরাষ্ট্রকে জানিয়েছে ভারত। পররাষ্ট্রসচিব সুজাতা সিং যুক্তরাষ্ট্র সফরে দেশটির পররাষ্ট্রসচিব ওয়েন্ডি শেরম্যানের সঙ্গে ঢাকার পরিস্থিতি নিয়ে আলোচনা করেন।
সুজাতা সিং মার্কিন নেতৃত্বকে জানিয়েছেন, দক্ষিণ এশিয়ার নিরাপত্তার প্রশ্নে পশ্চিমা বিশ্বের উচিত বাংলাদেশে গণতান্ত্রিক এবং হিংসামুক্ত পরিবেশ ফিরিয়ে আনতে সহায়তা করা।
কিন্তু এ ব্যাপারে এখনো যুক্তরাষ্ট্র সক্রিয় সহযোগিতার পদক্ষেপ নেয়নি বলে মনে করে ভারত। ভারতের সরকারি সূত্রের দাবি, যুক্তরাষ্ট্র মনে করে, জামায়াতে ইসলামী জঙ্গিবাদের সমর্থক নয়। তাই রাজনৈতিক পরিসরে তাদের জায়গা দিলে, মৌলবাদী তালেবানপন্থীদের সঙ্গে লড়াইয়ে লাভবান হওয়া যাবে। আর এ কারণেই হোয়াইট হাউস থেকে শেখ হাসিনার কাছে ফোন গিয়েছে। তাঁকে অনুরোধ করা হয়েছে, বিএনপির কথা মেনে পদত্যাগ করে, সরকার ভেঙে দিয়ে ভোটে যেতে। নোবেলজয়ী অর্থনীতিবিদ ড. মুহাম্মদ ইউনূসকে ঘিরে বিতর্কের সময় থেকেই যুক্তরাষ্ট্রের বিরাগভাজন হাসিনার আওয়ামী লীগ।
যুক্তরাষ্ট্র মনে করে, বিএনপি তাদের নীতির প্রতি অনেকটাই বিশ্বস্ত। তারা ক্ষমতায় এলে বাংলাদেশের বাজারে ঢোকা মার্কিনদের পক্ষে সহজ হবে। তাই রণকৌশলগত প্রশ্নেও বিএনপি জোট এ মুহূর্তে যুক্তরাষ্ট্রের কাম্য।
কিন্তু জামায়াতের হিংসাত্মক কাজের জন্য দেশের পরিস্থিতি ক্রমশই হাতের বাইরে চলে যাচ্ছে। আর যুক্তরাষ্ট্রকে সে কথাই বোঝানোর চেষ্টা করছে নয়াদিল্লি। কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসি এবং সহিংস ঘটনায় সীমান্ত পরিস্থিতি নিয়েও আশঙ্কায় ভারত। বিপুলসংখ্যক শরণার্থীর অনুপ্রবেশ ঘটতে পারে, এমন আশঙ্কাও রয়েছে নয়াদিল্লির।
Amnesty International has said the execution of Bangladesh's Jamaat-e-Islami leader and war criminal Abdul Quader Mollah could trigger more violence with the country's minority Hindu community bearing the brunt.
Mollah, who was also the Jammat's assistant secretary general, was hanged at 10.01 p.m. Thursday, hours after the country's highest court dismissed his petition to review his death sentence.
Mollah was sentenced to death for crimes against humanity in the 1971 Liberation War.
"The execution of Abdul Quader Mollah should never have happened. The death penalty is a human rights violation and should not be used to punish other alleged human rights violations," said Abbas Faiz, Amnesty International's Bangladesh Researcher, in a press release.
"The country is on a razor's edge at the moment with pre-election tensions running high and almost non-stop street protests. Mollah's execution could trigger more violence with the Hindu community bearing the brunt," Faiz said.
The rights body said Hindus are at a risk of reprisal attacks after the execution.
"Bangladesh's minority Hindu community has been targeted in attacks this year following an earlier ICT (International Crimes Tribunal) verdict, they are at particular risk of violence now the execution has been carried out," Faiz said.
"The authorities must ensure that anyone at risk, especially Hindus, are given the protection they need at this tense time. Whole villages were burned down in the violence against Hindus this year and no one has been brought to justice.
"It is also crucial that all politicians in Bangladesh make it crystal clear to their supporters to refrain from human rights abuses and that attacks on Hindu communities are unacceptable," Faiz added.
Meanwhile Bangladesh on Saturday paid homage to victims, including the deceased intellectuals who were killed by the Pakistani forces and their collaborators during the 1971 liberation war.
People held the Bangladesh national flag and black flags, and gathered at the memorial to pay tribute to the victims.
Leader of Opposition Begum Khaleda Zia laid wreath at the memorial, keeping alive the decade-old animosity.
The President of the National Garment Workers Federation in Bangladesh, Amirul Haque Amin, said that all war criminals should face speedy trials and should be hanged.
"On December 14, 1971, many people were killed by the Razakars (paramilitary force organized by the Pakistan Army in East Pakistan) and the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami, Islami Chhatra Shibir. We have come here to pay homage to the victims. People of the country are very happy with the execution of the Islamist leader, Abdul Quadar Mollah. We demand that rest of the war criminals and the members of Jamaat-e-Islami who are accused of killing should undergo trial and should be hanged," he said.
Bangladesh became part of Pakistan at the end of British colonial rule in 1947. The country, then known as East Pakistan, won independence with India's help in December 1971 following a nine-month war against the rest of Pakistan.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, daughter of independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, set up the war crimes tribunal in 2010 to investigate abuses during the 1971 war.
Islamist opposition leader, Abdul Quader Mollah, accused of war crimes committed during the 1971 war of independence from Pakistan, was executed on December 12.
The decision to hang Mollah, a senior figure in the Jamaat-e-Islami party that is a key part of the opposition coalition, drew widespread condemnation from political allies and international human rights groups.
But many citizens celebrated the first ever execution of a Bangladesh war criminal, which took place late on Thursday at the Dhaka Central Jail in the capital.
Mollah's execution has worsened tensions that were already running high, threatening to cripple Bangladesh's economy, notably its USD 22-billion garment industry.
There has been almost daily unrest in the impoverished nation of 160 million people since last month's announcement of parliamentary elections on January 5.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her ruling Awami League are determined to go ahead with the vote, but the opposition, led by Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) head Begum Khaleda Zia, says it will not participate unless an interim government is installed and Hasina steps down.
Senior leaders from the Awami League and BNP-led opposition were expected to meet later on Friday for a third round of talks to break the political deadlock.
Two days after UN envoy Oscar Fernandez-Taranco's left Dhaka, Bangladesh's ruling Awami League (AL) and main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) resumed discussions over handling the political stalemate.
The deadlock is mainly over Sheikh Hasina-led government's move to conduct Jan 5 parliamentary elections under a caretaker government like previous elections. The opposition parties-led by Khaleda Zia's BNP oppose it.
On Friday, top Awami League and BNP leaders proposed ways to emerge out of the current crisis, officials of the two parties said, bdnews24.com reported.
"They have given some proposals; we have given ours," said Awami League General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam after the meeting. He said the party would take a decision after discussing them.
"We began our talks to pave the way for a fair election with all parties taking part," said BNP acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
The BNP had given certain specific proposals and so had the Awami League, he said. "Now we will decide after discussion in the party."
On Friday evening, the talks, mediated by UN Resident Coordinator in Dhaka Neal Walker, began at a UN project office here.
Hasina-led AL's General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam, Advisory Council members Amir Hossain Amu, Tofail Ahmed and Prime Minister Hasina's advisor Gowher Rizvi were representing the ruling AL party.
BNP's acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Standing Committee members Khander Mosharraf Hossain and Abdul Moyeen Khan and Vice Chairman Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury represented the other side.
Leaders of these two sides had held talks at the same place Wednesday with UN Assistant Secretary General Oscar Fernandez-Taranco bringing them to the negotiating table. He left Dhaka Wednesday evening, while urging the two sides to continue talks.
The UN assistant secretary general for political affairs during his visit had managed to bring the bickering politicians -- Prime Minister Hasina and Opposition leader Zia -- to the negotiating table and urged them to find out home-grown solutions.
এ নিয়ে গত বৃহস্পতিবার রাতে রায় কার্যকরের পর থেকে গতকাল পর্যন্ত মোট ১৮ জন প্রাণ হারালেন।
ফাঁসির রায় কার্যকরের প্রতিবাদে বৃহস্পতিবার রাতেই জামায়াতে ইসলামী আজ রোববার সারা দেশে সকাল-সন্ধ্যা হরতালের ডাক দেয়। এই হরতালের সমর্থনে দেশের বিভিন্ন স্থানে সহিংসতায় নামে তারা।
নীলফামারী-২ (সদর) আসনের সাংসদ আসাদুজ্জামান নূরের গাড়িবহরে গতকাল বিকেলে জামায়াত-শিবির হামলা চালালে পুলিশ ও আওয়ামী লীগের সঙ্গে তাদের সংঘর্ষ হয়। সংঘর্ষে নিহত ব্যক্তিরা হলেন সদর উপজেলার টুপামারী ইউনিয়ন কৃষক লীগের সভাপতি খোরশেদ চৌধুরী (৫৫), আওয়ামী লীগের কর্মী লেবু (৪০), যুবলীগের কর্মী ফরহাদ হোসেন (২৫), ছাত্রলীগের কর্মী মুরাদ হোসেন (২০) ও জামায়াতের কর্মী আবু বক্কর সিদ্দিক (৪২)। পাঁচজনের মৃত্যুর তথ্য নিশ্চিত করেছেন সদর থানার ভারপ্রাপ্ত কর্মকর্তা (ওসি) আবু আক্কাস আহমেদ। তবে সাংসদ নূর অক্ষত আছেন।
নোয়াখালীর কোম্পানীগঞ্জে গতকাল হরতালের সমর্থনে জামায়াত-শিবির মিছিল বের করলে পুলিশের সঙ্গে সংঘর্ষের সূত্রপাত হয়। উপজেলা পরিষদ কমপ্লেক্সের সাতটি সরকারি দপ্তর পুড়িয়ে দেন জামায়াত-শিবিরের কর্মীরা। আওয়ামী লীগের কর্মীরা জ্বালিয়ে দেন জামায়াত-সমর্থকদের একটি হাইস্কুল। সংঘর্ষে নিহত ব্যক্তিরা হলেন: রাসেল (২৫), মতিউর রহমান (২৩) ও সাইফুল ইসলাম (২২)। বাকি দুজনের পরিচয় পাওয়া যায়নি। জেলা পুলিশ সুপার (এসপি) মো. আনিসুর রহমান বলেছেন, তিনজনের মৃত্যুর খবর পাওয়া গেছে। তবে জামায়াতের দাবি, সংঘর্ষে তাদের সাতজন কর্মী নিহত হয়েছেন।
সাংসদের গাড়িবহরে হামলা, নিহত ৫: নীলফামারীতে পুলিশ, আওয়ামী লীগ ও জামায়াত-শিবিরের মধ্যে ত্রিমুখী সংঘর্ষ হয়। বিকেলে সদর উপজেলার রামগঞ্জ ব্রিজের কাছে এ ঘটনা ঘটে।
প্রত্যক্ষদর্শীরা জানান, বিকেল সাড়ে চারটার দিকে পুলিশি পাহারায় সাংসদ আসাদুজ্জামান নূরের গাড়িবহর রামগঞ্জ ব্রিজের সামনে জামায়াত-শিবিরের কেটে দেওয়া রাস্তায় আটকে যায়। এ সময় জামায়াত-শিবিরের নেতা-কর্মীরা পেছন দিক থেকে সাংসদের গাড়িবহরে হামলা চালান। কিছুক্ষণের মধ্যে সামনে থেকেও হামলা চালানো হয়। পরিস্থিতির অবনতি হলে পুলিশ রাবার বুলেট, কাঁদানে গ্যাসের শেল ও গুলি ছোড়ে। এ সময় পুলিশ ও আওয়ামী লীগের সঙ্গে জামায়াত-শিবিরের সংঘর্ষ বেধে যায়। এতে জামায়াতের কর্মী আবু বক্কর সিদ্দিক ঘটনাস্থলেই মারা যান।
পরে জামায়াত-শিবিরের কর্মীরা টুপামারী ইউনিয়ন কৃষক লীগের সভাপতি খোরশেদ চৌধুরী ও যুবলীগের কর্মী ফরহাদ হোসেনকে কুপিয়ে হত্যা করে। প্রায় এক ঘণ্টা ধরে এ সংঘর্ষ চলাকালে জামায়াত-শিবির স্থানীয় অর্ধশতাধিক ব্যবসাপ্রতিষ্ঠান ও আওয়ামী লীগ-সমর্থকদের বাসাবাড়িতে হামলা চালিয়ে ভাঙচুর ও অগ্নিসংযোগ করে। ২০টি মোটরসাইকেলও তাণ্ডবের শিকার হয়। সংঘর্ষে পুলিশসহ শতাধিক ব্যক্তি আহত হন।
সংঘর্ষে গুরুতর আহত আওয়ামী লীগের কর্মী লেবু ও ছাত্রলীগের কর্মী মুরাদ হোসেন রংপুর মেডিকেল কলেজ হাসপাতালে মারা যান।
আসাদুজ্জামান নূর জানান, জামায়াত নেতা আবদুল কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসির রায় কার্যকরের পর দলটির নেতা-কর্মীরা নীলফামারী সদরের বিভিন্ন গ্রামে তাণ্ডব চালান। এসব ঘটনা দেখতে তিনি গতকাল সকাল থেকে পলাশবাড়ীর তরুণীবাড়ী, হরীতকীতলা ও লক্ষ্মীচাপ ইউনিয়নের কাছারীবাজার শীশাতলী ও লক্ষ্মীচাপ ইউনিয়ন আওয়ামী লীগের সভাপতি শ্যাম চরণ রায়ের বাড়ি পরিদর্শন করেন। বিকেলে নীলফামারী শহরে ফেরার পথে জামায়াত-শিবির তাঁর গাড়িবহরে হামলা চালায়। প্রায় সোয়া ঘণ্টা অবরুদ্ধ থাকার পর সন্ধ্যায় তিনি পুলিশি পাহারায় তাঁর নীলফামারীর বাসভবনে পৌঁছান।
শহর জামায়াতের আমির আল ফারুকের দাবি, পুলিশের গুলিতে জামায়াতের কর্মী আবু বক্কর সিদ্দিক মারা গেছেন।
নীলফামারী সহকারী পুলিশ সুপার শফিউল ইসলাম বলেন, পুলিশ রাবার বুলেট ও কাঁদানে গ্যাসের শেল ছুড়ে সাংসদ নূরকে নিরাপদে নিয়ে আসে। এ সময় তিনিও (এএসপি) আহত হন। তাঁর গাড়িসহ পুলিশের আরও দুটি গাড়ি ভাঙচুর করা হয়।
সাংসদের গাড়িবহরে দুটি মাইক্রোবাস, পুলিশের তিনটি পিকআপ ভ্যান ও একটি জিপ এবং জেলা পরিষদের প্রশাসকের একটি জিপ ছিল। সাংসদ নূর একটি মাইক্রোবাসে ছিলেন। হামলায় তাঁকে বহনকারী গাড়িসহ অন্যগুলোর কাচ ভাঙা হয়।
কোম্পানীগঞ্জে পাঁচজন নিহত: প্রত্যক্ষদর্শীরা জানান, কোম্পানীগঞ্জের বসুরহাট মডেল হাইস্কুলের পাশ থেকে বেলা সোয়া তিনটার দিকে হরতালের সমর্থনে মিছিলের প্রস্তুতি নিচ্ছিল জামায়াত-শিবির। পুলিশ তাদের ধাওয়া দিলে এবং গুলি করলে দুই পক্ষে সংঘর্ষ বেধে যায়। সন্ধ্যা পর্যন্ত বিক্ষিপ্তভাবে বসুরহাট বাজারের বিভিন্ন এলাকায় এ সংঘর্ষ চলে। এ সময় জামায়াত-শিবিরের নেতা-কর্মীরা উপজেলা পরিষদ কমপ্লেক্সের ভেতরে পল্লী উন্নয়ন কার্যালয়, সেটেলমেন্ট কর্মকর্তার কার্যালয়, পরিবার পরিকল্পনা কর্মকর্তার কার্যালয়, কৃষি কর্মকর্তার কার্যালয়, ডাকঘর, আনসার ও ভিডিপি কার্যালয় এবং সহকারী কমিশনার (ভূমি) কার্যালয়ে আগুন দেন। একপর্যায়ে আওয়ামী লীগের কর্মীরা জামায়াত-সমর্থকদের পরিচালিত বসুরহাট মডেল হাইস্কুলে আগুন দেন। এতে স্কুলটি সম্পূর্ণ ভস্মীভূত হয়ে যায়। ত্রিমুখী সংঘর্ষ চলাকালে অসংখ্য ককটেল ফাটানো হয়। পরে অতিরিক্ত পুলিশ ও বিজিবির সদস্যরা ঘটনাস্থলে গিয়ে পরিস্থিতি নিয়ন্ত্রণে আনেন।
বসুরহাট পৌর জামায়াতের সেক্রেটারি মোশারফ হোসেন বলেন, তাঁরা পুলিশের কাছ থেকে শান্তিপূর্ণ মিছিল-সমাবেশের অনুমতি নিয়েছিলেন। কিন্তু মিছিল শুরুর আগ মুহূর্তে পুলিশ বিনা উসকানিতে দলীয় নেতা-কর্মীদের ওপর গুলি চালায়। এতে সাতজন নিহত হন। আহত হন কমপক্ষে ৪০ জন।
নোয়াখালী দক্ষিণ জেলা ছাত্রশিবিরের সভাপতি জিয়াউল হকের দাবি, পুলিশের গুলিতে নিহত জামায়াত-শিবিরের তিনজনের লাশ থানায় রয়েছে। বাকি চারজনের লাশ দলীয় কর্মীরা বাড়িতে নিয়ে গেছেন।
উপজেলা স্বাস্থ্য কমপ্লেক্সে কর্তব্যরত চিকিৎ সক রশিদুল হাসান জানান, সংঘর্ষে আহত মতিউর রহমান ও সাইফুর ইসলাম নামের দুজনকে হাসপাতালে আনার পর মৃত ঘোষণা করা হয়।
তবে জেলা পুলিশ সুপার (এসপি) মো. আনিসুর রহমান জানান, তিনজনের লাশ থানায় রয়েছে। এঁদের মধ্যে রাসেল নামের একজনের পরিচয় পাওয়া গেছে।
পুলিশ সুপার বলেন, অতিরিক্ত পুলিশ ও বিজিবির সদস্যরা পরিস্থিতি নিয়ন্ত্রণ করেন। সংঘর্ষে জামায়াত-শিবিরের নেতা-কর্মীরা গুলি চালান। এতে কোম্পানীগঞ্জ থানার পরিদর্শক (তদন্ত) মো. সফিকুল ইসলামসহ পুলিশের পাঁচ সদস্য গুলিবিদ্ধ হন। এ ঘটনায় পাঁচজনকে আটক করেছে পুলিশ।
সিলেটে কুপিয়ে হত্যা: নিজস্ব প্রতিবেদক, সিলেট জানান, জেলার কানাইঘাট উপজেলায় রাত ১১টার দিকে সুরমা ব্রিজের কাছে আওয়ামী লীগ কর্মী নজরুল ইসলামকে কুপিয়ে হত্যা করা হয়। এ হত্যাকাণ্ডের জন্য জামায়াত-শিবিরকে দায়ী করেছে উপজেলা আওয়ামী লীগ।
ভোট ছাড়াই মহাজোট সংখ্যাগরিষ্ঠ?
এ ছাড়া সিলেট-৫ সেলিম উদ্দিন, হবিগঞ্জ-১ এম এম মনিম চৌধুরী, সুনামগঞ্জ-৪ পীর ফজলুর রহমানসহ জাতীয় পার্টির ১৭ জন প্রার্থীর আসনে অন্য কেউ প্রার্থী নন। ফলে এই আসনগুলোর সংশ্লিষ্ট রিটার্নিং কর্মকর্তা গণবিজ্ঞপ্তি জারি করলে তাঁরা বেসরকারিভাবে সাংসদ নির্বাচিত হবেন। যদিও জাতীয় পার্টির চেয়ারম্যান হুসেইন মুহম্মদ এরশাদ নির্বাচনে না যাওয়ার ঘোষণা দিয়েছেন।
কুষ্টিয়া-২ থেকে হাসানুল হক ইনুসহ তিনজন নৌকা প্রতীকে বিনা প্রতিদ্বন্দ্বিতায় নির্বাচিত হচ্ছেন। এ ছাড়া ঢাকা-৮ রাশেদ খান মেনন, রাজশাহী-২ ফজলে হোসেন বাদশা ওয়ার্কার্স পার্টি থেকে নৌকা প্রতীকে বিনা প্রতিদ্বন্দ্বিতায় সাংসদ নির্বাচিত হচ্ছেন। জাতীয় পার্টি (জেপি) থেকে পিরোজপুর-২ আনোয়ার হোসেন মঞ্জু বিনা প্রতিদ্বন্দ্বিতায় জয়ী হতে যাচ্ছেন।
ইলেকশন না সিলেকশন?
নির্বাচনের আগেই এ ধরনের অবস্থা ব্যাখ্যা করতে গিয়ে সুজনের সাধারণ সম্পাদক বদিউল আলম মজুমদার প্রথম আলো ডটকমকে বলেন, 'এই নির্বাচন "নির্বাচন" হলে প্রহসন কোনটা? এখন ইলেকশন হচ্ছে না, সিলেকশনে হচ্ছে। এই নির্বাচন আমাদের জন্য কল্যাণ বয়ে আনবে না। এটা দেশের জন্য কাম্য হতে পারে না।'
রাজনৈতিক বিশ্লেষক মিজানুর রহমান শেলী বলেন, 'এটা চমকপ্রদ, উদ্দীপক ব্যাপার। ১৯৮৮ ও ১৯৯৬ সালের একতরফা নির্বাচনেও বিনা প্রতিদ্বন্দ্বিতা হওয়ার সুযোগ পায়নি। ফলে এই সরকার কতখানি টেকসই হবে সেটা নিয়ে সন্দেহ থাকবে।'
সহিংসতার পটভূমিতে নির্বাচনে হচ্ছে উল্লেখ করে মিজানুর রহমান শেলী আরও বলেন, এ নির্বাচন জাতির জন্য, অর্থনীতি ও শান্তির জন্য কতটা সহায়ক সেটা প্রশ্ন থেকেই যাবে। এ জন্য সর্বদলের অংশগ্রহণের ভিত্তিতে নির্বাচন করতে হবে। কিন্তু যিনি চালকের আসনে বসে আছেন, নিজ অবস্থানে অটল না থেকে জাতিকে উদ্ধার করতে হবে।
সাবেক প্রধান নির্বাচন কমিশনার এ টি এম শামসুল হুদা প্রথম আলো ডটকমকে বলেন, 'এ ধরনের অবস্থা বাংলাদেশ কখনো দেখেনি। এর বেশি মন্তব্য করা সমীচীন হবে না।'
আর সহ্য করব না: প্রধানমন্ত্রী
প্রধানমন্ত্রী শেখ হাসিনাপ্রধানমন্ত্রী শেখ হাসিনা বলেছেন, সরকার অনেক ধৈর্যের পরিচয় দিয়েছে। কিন্তু তিনি আর নৈরাজ্য সহ্য করবেন না। বিশৃঙ্খলা সৃষ্টিকারীদের কঠোর হাতে দমন করবেন।আজ শনিবার রাজধানীর কৃষিবিদ ইনস্টিটিউশন মিলনায়তনে মহান বুদ্ধিজীবী দিবস উপলক্ষে আওয়ামী লীগ আয়োজিত আলোচনায় সভায় প্রধানমন্ত্রী এসব কথা বলেন।বিরোধীদলীয় নেতা খালেদা জিয়ার উদ্দেশে প্রধানমন্ত্রী বলেন, 'অনেক ধৈর্যের পরিচয় দিচ্ছি। নারী-শিশু হত্যা করবেন, ছেলেমেয়েদের পরীক্ষা দিতে দেবেন না, আর আমরা বসে বসে সহ্য করব, তা হবে না।' তিনি বলেন, 'জনগণের বিরুদ্ধে যুদ্ধ ঘোষণা করবেন, জনগণও জানে কীভাবে যুদ্ধে জয়ী হতে হয়। যুদ্ধাপরাধীদের বিচার বাংলার মাটিতে করবই করব। এ যুদ্ধে বাংলার জনগণ জয়ী হবেই।'
খালেদা জিয়ার উদ্দেশে প্রধানমন্ত্রী আরও বলেন, 'জামায়াতকে নিয়ে থাকতে চান, থাকেন। খুন-খারাবি করবেন না। এসবের জবাব কীভাবে দিতে হয়, তা আমরা জানি। জনগণের বিরুদ্ধে যুদ্ধ করে জয়ী হতে পারবেন না।'
শেখ হাসিনা বলেন, যুদ্ধাপরাধীদের বিচারের একটা রায় কার্যকর হয়েছে। একের পর এক বাকি রায়ও কার্যকর হবে। ভয়-ভীতি দেখিয়ে কাজ হবে না। তিনি বলেন, 'যেখান থেকেই ফোন করানো হোক না কেন, জনগণের অধিকারই আমার কাছে সবচেয়ে বড়।'
বিপুলসংখ্যক প্রার্থী বিনা প্রতিদ্বন্দ্বিতায় জয়ী হওয়ার কথা উল্লেখ করে শেখ হাসিনা বলেন, 'প্রার্থিতা প্রত্যাহার করায় অনেকগুলো আসনে প্রতিদ্বন্দ্বিতা হবে না। যাঁরা আমাদের সঙ্গে সর্বদলীয় সরকারে আছে, আলাপ-আলোচনার মধ্য দিয়ে আমরা এ পরিবেশ সৃষ্টি করেছি। যে কারণে প্রতিদ্বন্দ্বিতা হবে না। বিএনপি এলেও আমরা একই প্রক্রিয়া অনুসরণ করতাম।'
বিরোধী দলের তত্ত্বাবধায়ক সরকারের দাবির প্রতি ইঙ্গিত করে আওয়ামী লীগের সভানেত্রী বলেন, 'আদালতে যা অবৈধ হয়েছে, এটাকে নিয়ে টানাটানি করা ঠিক হবে না। আমাদের একভাবে না-একভাবে শুরু করা উচিত। ৩৮ বছর বছর ধরে এ সমস্যা চলছে। এ জন্যই বিএনপি নেত্রীকে ফোন করেছিলাম। কিন্তু তিনি জামায়াত ছাড়া নির্বাচন করবেন না।'
প্রধানমন্ত্রী বলেন, 'আমরা বিচারের রায় কার্যকর শুরু করেছি। রায় কার্যকরের আগে থেকেই বিএনপি নেত্রী অস্থির হয়ে গেছেন। বিচার বন্ধ করার জন্য তারা '৭১ সালের মতো মানুষ হত্যা করছে। রেলের ফিশপ্লেট তুলে আগুন দেওয়া হচ্ছে। পেট্রল ঢেলে মানুষ মারা হচ্ছে।'
তোফায়েল আহমেদ বলেন, বুদ্ধিজীবী হত্যাকারীদের বিচার করার মতো কঠিন কাজ করছেন প্রধানমন্ত্রী শেখ হাসিনা। এ জন্য বাংলাদেশ যত দিন থাকবে তত দিন শেখ হাসিনার নাম স্বর্ণাক্ষরে লেখা থাকবে।
মতিয়া চৌধুরী বলেন, পাকিস্তানি হানাদার বাহিনী জানত না কোন বাড়িতে যুবতী আছে। এই রাজাকার-আলবদর বাহিনী তাদের পথ দেখিয়ে নিয়ে যেত।
সভায় শহীদ সাংবাদিক সিরাজুদ্দীন হোসেনের ছেলে শাহীন রেজা নূর যুদ্ধাপরাধীদের বিচারের রায় কার্যকর করায় শেখ হাসিনার প্রতি কৃতজ্ঞতা প্রকাশ করেন।
সৈয়দা সাজেদা চৌধুরীর সভাপতিত্বে অনুষ্ঠিত আলোচনা সভায় আরও বক্তৃতা করেন জাহাঙ্গীর কবির নানক, মোফাজ্জল হোসেন চৌধুরী মায়া, আবদুর রাজ্জাক, আ ফ ম বাহাউদ্দিন প্রমুখ।
অনুসন্ধানের ফলাফলসহিংসতায় নিহত ৭ - Prothom Alo
www.prothom-alo.com/bangladesh/2013-12.../সহিংসতায়_নিহত_৭
২১ ঘন্টা আগে - মানবতাবিরোধী অপরাধের দায়ে জামায়াতে ইসলামীর নেতা আবদুল কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসির রায় কার্যকর করার পর থেকে সহিংস হয়ে উঠেছেন দলটির নেতা-কর্মীরা। গত বৃহস্পতিবার রাত থেকে গতকাল শুক্রবার সন্ধ্যা পর্যন্ত নোয়াখালী, সাতক্ষীরা, পিরোজপুর, যশোর ও খুলনায় সাতজন নিহত হয়েছেন। এর মধ্যে ইসলামী ছাত্রশিবিরের...
ফাঁসির পর সহিংসতায় নিহত ৬ - bdnews24.com
১৪ ঘন্টা আগে - যুদ্ধাপরাধের দায়ে আব্দুল কাদের মোল্লাকে ফাঁসিতে ঝোলানোর পর দেশের বিভিন্ন স্থানে জামায়াতকর্মীদের সহিংসতায় ছয় জনের মৃত্যু হয়েছে।
বাংলাদেশে ব্যাপক সহিংসতায় ছ'জন জন নিহত - BBC Bangla - খবর
www.bbc.co.uk/bengali/news/.../131214_mh_bangladesh_violence.shtml
৪ ঘন্টা আগে - বাংলাদেশে জামায়াতে ইসলামীর নেতা কাদের মোল্লার মৃত্যুদন্ড কার্যকর করার পর অব্যাহত সহিংসতায় আজ অন্তত ছ'জননিহত হয়েছে। লক্ষ্মীপুরে জামায়াত কর্মীদের সঙ্গে পুলিশের সংঘর্ষে তিন এবং নীলফামারীতে আওয়ামী লীগ এমপি আসাদুজ্জামান নুরের গাড়ী বহরে হামলায় দুজন নিহত হয়।
কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসির পর দেশ জুড়ে সহিংসতা, নিহত ৩ - BBC Bangla - খবর
www.bbc.co.uk/bengali/news/.../131213_pg_bangladesh_violence.shtml
৯ ঘন্টা আগে - বাংলাদেশের বিভিন্ন স্থানে অন্তত ৩ জন নিহত হয়েছেন। ... আবদুল কাদের মোল্লার মৃত্যুদন্ড কার্যকরের পর রাজধানী ঢাকা সহ বিভিন্ন জায়গায় সহিংসতা-বিক্ষোভ, ভাঙচুর, যানবাহনে আগুন দেয়া এবং পুলিশ-বিক্ষোভকারী সংঘর্ষের ঘটনায় অন্তত ৩ জন নিহতহয়েছেন। ... নোয়াখালিতে ব্যাপক সহিংসতায় তিন জন নিহত 14 ডিসেম্বর 2013.
Daily Manab Zamin | ২০ দিনে সহিংসতায় নিহত ৮৮
৩ ঘন্টা আগে - দেশব্যাপী রাজনৈতিক সহিংসতা অব্যাহত রয়েছে। প্রতিদিনই দীর্ঘ হচ্ছে মৃত্যুর মিছিল। গত ২০ দিনে আইন-শৃঙ্খলা বাহিনী ও সরকার দলের নেতাকর্মীদের সঙ্গে ১৮ দলের নেতাকর্মীদের সংঘর্ষে বিভিন্ন জেলায় অন্তত ৮৮ জন নিহত হয়েছেন। প্রথম দফা তিন দিনের অবরোধে নিহত হন ২২ জন। দ্বিতীয় দফা টানা ৬ দিনের অবরোধে নিহত হন ২৯ জন।
সারাদেশে জামায়াতের সহিংসতায় নিহত ৮ | বিশেষ খবর | Samakal Online ...
1 দিন আগে - কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসির রায় কার্যকরের পর থেকে দেশজুড়ে তাণ্ডব চালায় জামায়াত-শিবিরের নেতাকর্মীরা।
মতিঝিলে জামায়াতের ধ্বংসযজ্ঞ, দেশজুড়ে সহিংসতায় নিহত ৭ - সম্পাদকীয়
www.kalerkantho.com/print-edition/first-page/2013/12/14/30584
২৩ ঘন্টা আগে - একাত্তরের মানবতাবিরোধী অপরাধের দায়ে জামায়াত নেতা কাদের মোল্লাকে বৃহস্পতিবার রাতে ফাঁসিতে ঝোলানোর পর থেকে দেশের বিভিন্ন স্থানে ভয়াবহ ধ্বংসযজ্ঞ চালিয়েছে.
সহিংসতায় নিহত-এর চিত্র
কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসি পরবর্তী সহিংসতায় নিহত ৫, যোগাযোগ বিচ্ছিন্ন
bangla.irib.ir/.../56487-কাদের-মোল্লার-ফাঁসি-পরবর্তী-সহ...
২ দিন আগে - কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসি পরবর্তী সহিংসতায় নিহত ৩, রেল যোগাযোগ স্থগিত.
অবরোধের দ্বিতীয় দিনে, দেশজুড়ে সহিংসতায় নিহত ৯
www.radiotodaybd.fm/news.php?&...%20দেশজুড়ে%20সহিংসতায়...
অবরোধের দ্বিতীয় দিনে, দেশজুড়ে সহিংসতায় নিহত ৯, fm, 89.6 fm, bd radio, fm radio, bd fm radio, radio today, radio today fm 89.6, bangladesh radio, radio today bangladesh, fm radio in bangladesh, bangla fm radio.
সারা দেশে সহিংসতায় নিহত ৮ - যুগান্তর
সারা দেশে সহিংসতায় নিহত ৮. যুগান্তর ডেস্ক. প্রকাশ : ১৪ ডিসেম্বর, ২০১৩. জামায়াত নেতা কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসির রায় কার্যকর হওয়ার পর পর দেশের বিভিন্ন স্থানে তাণ্ডব চালায় জামায়াত-শিবির কর্মীরা। এতে ছয় জেলায় সহিংস ঘটনায় মারা গেছে আটজন। বৃহস্পতিবার রাতে সাতক্ষীরার কলারোয়া ও সরসকাটিতে দুই আওয়ামী লীগ নেতাকে তাদের বাড়ি ...
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কাল জামায়াতের সারাদেশে সকাল-সন্ধ্যা হরতাল
১৩ ঘন্টা আগে - ঢাকা, ১৪ নভেম্বর: যুদ্ধাপরাধের দায়ে জামায়াত নেতা আব্দুল কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসির দণ্ড কার্যকর করার প্রতিবাদে আগামীকাল রোববার সারাদেশে সকাল-সন্ধ্যা হরতাল ডেকেছে দলটি। হরতালের সমর্থনে আজ শনিবার রাজধানীসহ দেশের বিভিন্ন এলাকায় মিছিল করেছে জামায়াতে ইসলামী ও ছাত্রশিবির। গত বৃহস্পতিবার রাত ১০টা ১মিনিটে ...
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1 ঘন্টা আগে - স্টাফ রিপোর্টার : শহীদ আব্দুল কাদের মোল্লাকে নির্মমভাবে হত্যার প্রতিবাদে আজ রোববার জামায়াতে ইসলামীর ডাকে দেশব্যাপী সকাল-সন্ধ্যা সর্বাত্মক হরতাল। গত বৃহস্পতিবার রাত ১০টা ১ মিনিটে আবদুল কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসির রায় কার্যকরের পরপরই জামায়াতে ইসলামীর ভারপ্রাপ্ত আমীর মকবুল আহমদ এই হরতালের কর্মসূচি ঘোষণা করেন।
Daily Manab Zamin | জামায়াতের সকাল-সন্ধ্যা হরতাল আজ
৩ ঘন্টা আগে - আবদুল কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসি কার্যকর করার প্রতিবাদে আজ সারা দেশের সকাল-সন্ধ্যা হরতালের ডাক দিয়েছে জামায়াত। বৃহস্পতিবার রাতে ঢাকা কেন্দ্রীয় কারাগারে কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসি কার্যকর হওয়ার পর দেশজুড়ে সংঘাত সহিংসতা ছড়িয়ে পড়ে। এতে কমপক্ষে ৭ জন নিহত হন। আহত হয়েছেন জামায়াত-শিবিরের বহু নেতাকর্মী। এ ইস্যুতে ...
লক্ষ্মীপুরে মঙ্গলবার সকাল-সন্ধ্যা হরতাল, জামায়াত নেতার দাফন
৮ ঘন্টা আগে - লক্ষ্মীপুর: লক্ষ্মীপুরে জেলা জামায়াতের নায়েবে আমির ডা. ফয়েজ আহমেদের জানাজা শেষে তার লাশ দাফন করা হয়েছে। জামায়াত নেতা হত্যার প্রতিবাদে মঙ্গলবার লক্ষ্মীপুরে সকাল-সন্ধ্যা হরতালের ডাক দিয়েছেন জেলা জামায়াত। লক্ষ্মীপুর জেলা জামায়াতেরসহকারী সেক্রেটারি এ আর হাফিজ উল্যাহ এক প্রেস বিজ্ঞপ্তির মাধ্যমে ...
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২ দিন আগে - ঢাকা: দলের অন্যতম শীর্ষ নেতা আব্দুল কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসির রায় কার্যকরের প্রতিবাদে আগামী রোববার সারাদেশে সকাল-সন্ধ্যা হরতাল ডেকেছে জামায়াতে ইসলামী। বৃহস্পতিবার রাতে ফাঁসি কার্যকরের পরপরই দলটির পক্ষে ভারপ্রাপ্ত আমীর মকবুল আহমাদ এক বিবৃতিতে এ কর্মসূচি ঘোষণা করেন। উল্লেখ্য, বৃহস্পতিবার রাত ১০টা ০১ মিনিটে ...
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জামায়াতের নেতা কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসি কার্যকরের প্রতিবাদে আগামী রোববার সারা দেশে সকাল-সন্ধ্যা হরতাল ডেকেছে জামায়াতে ইসলামী। আজ বৃহস্পতিবার রাতে কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসি কার্যকর হওয়ার পর এক বিবৃতিতে জামায়াতের ভারপ্রাপ্ত আমির মকবুল আহমাদ এই কর্মসূচি ঘোষণা করেন। একই সঙ্গে চার দিনের কর্মসূচি ঘোষণা...
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৩ দিন আগে - জামায়াতে ইসলামীর সহকারী সেক্রেটারি জেনারেল কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসির রায় কার্যকরের উদ্যোগের প্রতিবাদে আগামী কালওহরতাল আহবান করেছে জামায়াতে ইসলামী। দলের.
জামায়াতের সকাল-সন্ধ্যা হরতাল-এর চিত্র
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Foreign relations of India
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
IndiaIndia has formal diplomatic relations with most nations; it is the world's second most populous country, the world's most-populous democracy and one of the fastest growing major economies.[1]With the world's seventh largest military expenditure,[2] ninth largest economy by nominal rates and third largest by purchasing power parity, India is a regional power,[3] a nascent great power and apotential superpower. India's growing international influence gives it a prominent voice in global affairs. The Economist magazine argues, however, that underinvestment in diplomacy and a lack of strategic vision have minimised India's influence in the world.[4]
India is a newly industrialised country, it has a long history of collaboration with several countries and is considered one of the leaders of the developing world along with China, Brazil, Russia and South Africa (the BRICS countries).[5][6] India was one of the founding members of several international organisations, most notably the United Nations, the Asian Development Bank, G20 industrial nationsand the founder of the Non-aligned movement. India has also played an important and influential role in other international organisations like East Asia Summit,[7] World Trade Organisation,[8]International Monetary Fund (IMF),[9] G8+5[10] and IBSA Dialogue Forum.[11] Regionally, India is a part of SAARC and BIMSTEC. India has taken part in several UN peacekeeping missions and in 2007, it was the second-largest troop contributor to the United Nations.[12] India is currently seeking a permanent seat in the UN Security Council, along with the G4 nations.[13]
Contents
[hide]- 1 History
- 2 Policy
- 3 Overview
- 4 Strategic partners
- 5 Bilateral and regional relations
- 5.1 Neighbours
- 5.2 Asia–Pacific
- 5.3 Americas
- 5.4 Europe
- 5.5 West Asia
- 5.6 Russia and Central Asia
- 5.7 Africa
- 6 International organisations
- 7 International disputes
- 8 Further reading
- 9 See also
- 10 References
- 11 External links
History[edit]
Even before independence, the Government of British India maintained semi-autonomous diplomatic relations. It had colonies (such as the Aden Settlement), who sent and received full diplomatic missions,[14] and was a founder member of both the League of Nations[15]and the United Nations.[16] After India gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1947, it soon joined the Commonwealth of Nations and strongly supported independence movements in other colonies, like the Indonesian National Revolution.[17] The partitionand various territorial disputes, particularly that over Kashmir, would strain its relations with Pakistan for years to come. During the Cold War, India adopted a foreign policy of not aligning itself with any major power bloc. However, India developed close ties with the Soviet Union and received extensive military support from it.
The end of the Cold War significantly affected India's foreign policy, as it did for much of the world. The country now seeks to strengthen its diplomatic and economic ties with the United States,[18] the People's Republic of China,[19] the European Union,[20] Japan,[21]Israel,[22] Mexico,[23] and Brazil.[24] India has also forged close ties with the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations,[25] the African Union,[26] the Arab League[27] and Iran.[28]
Though India continues to have a military relationship with Russia,[29] Israel has emerged as India's second largest military partner[26]while India has built a strong strategic partnership with the United States.[18][30] The Indo-US civilian nuclear agreement, signed and implemented in 2008, highlighted the growing sophistication of the Indo-American relations.[31]
Policy[edit]
India's foreign policy has always regarded the concept of neighbourhood as one of widening concentric circles, around a central axis of historical and cultural commonalities.[32]
As many as 21 million people of Indian origin live and work abroad and constitute an important link with the mother country. An important role of India's foreign policy has been to ensure their welfare and well being within the framework of the laws of the country where they live.[33]
Role of the Prime Minister[edit]
Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister, promoted a strong personal role for the Prime Minister but a weak institutional structure. Nehru served concurrently as Prime Minister and Minister of External Affairs; he made all major foreign policy decisions himself after consulting with his advisers and then entrusted the conduct of international affairs to senior members of the Indian Foreign Service. He was the main founding fathers of the Panchsheel or the five principles of peaceful co-existence.
His successors continued to exercise considerable control over India's international dealings, although they generally appointed separate ministers of external affairs.[34][35][36]
India's second prime minister, Lal Bahadur Shastri (1964–66), expanded the Prime Minister Office (sometimes called the Prime Minister's Secretariat) and enlarged its powers. By the 1970s, the Office of the Prime Minister had become the de facto coordinator and supraministry of the Indian government. The enhanced role of the office strengthened the prime minister's control over foreign policy making at the expense of the Ministry of External Affairs. Advisers in the office provided channels of information and policy recommendations in addition to those offered by the Ministry of External Affairs. A subordinate part of the office—the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW)—functioned in ways that significantly expanded the information available to the prime minister and his advisers. The RAW gathered intelligence, provided intelligence analysis to the Office of the Prime Minister, and conducted covert operations abroad.
The prime minister's control and reliance on personal advisers in the Office of the Prime Minister was particularly strong under the tenures of Indira Gandhi (1966–77 and 1980–84) and her son, Rajiv (1984–89), who succeeded her, and weaker during the periods of coalition governments. Observers find it difficult to determine whether the locus of decision-making authority on any particular issue lies with the Ministry of External Affairs, the Council of Ministers, the Office of the Prime Minister, or the prime minister himself.[37]
The Prime Minister is however free to appoint advisers and special committees to examine various foreign policy options and areas of interest.[38] In a recent instance, Manmohan Singh appointed K. Subrahmanyam in 2005 to head a special government task force to study 'Global Strategic Developments' over the next decade.[39] The Task Force submitted its conclusions to the Prime Minister in 2006.[40][41] The report has not yet been released in the public domain.
Ministry of External Affairs[edit]
The Ministry of External Affairs is the Indian government's agency responsible for the foreign relations of India. The Minister of External Affairs holds cabinet rank as a member of the Council of Ministers.
Salman Khurshid is current Minister of External Affairs. The Ministry has two Ministers of State Preneet Kaur and E. Ahamed. TheIndian Foreign Secretary is the head of Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and therefore, serves as the head of all Indian ambassadors and high commissioners.[42] Sujatha Singh is the current Foreign Secretary of India.
Look East Policy[edit]
Main article: Look East policyIn the post Cold War era, a significant aspect of India's foreign policy is the Look East Policy. During the cold war, India's relations with its South East Asian neighbours was not very strong. After the end of the cold war, the government of India particularly realised the importance of redressing this imbalance in India's foreign policy. Consequently, the Narsimha Rao government in the early nineties of the last century unveiled the look east policy. Initially it focused on renewing political and economic contacts with the countries of East and South-East Asia.
At present, under the Look East Policy, the Government of India is giving special emphasis on the economic development of backward north eastern region of India taking advantage of huge market of ASEAN as well as of the energy resources available in some of the member countries of ASEAN like Burma.[43] Look-east policy was launched in 1992 just after the end of the cold war, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union. After the start of liberalisation, it was a very strategic policy decision taken by the government in the foreign policy. To quote Prime Minister Manmohan Singh "it was also a strategic shift in India's vision of the world and India's place in the evolving global economy".
The policy was given an initial thrust with the then Prime Minister Narasimha Rao visiting China, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam and Singapore and India becoming an important dialogue partner with ASEAN in 1992. Since the beginning of this century, India has given a big push to this policy by becoming a summit level partner of ASEAN (2002) and getting involved in some regional initiatives such as the BIMSTEC and the Ganga–Mekong Cooperation and now becoming a member of the East Asia Summit (EAS) in December, 2005.[44]
Overview[edit]
India's relations with the world have evolved since the British Raj (1857–1947), when the British Empire monopolised external and defence relations. When India gained independence in 1947, few Indians had experience in making or conducting foreign policy. However, the country's oldest political party, the Indian National Congress, had established a small foreign department in 1925 to make overseas contacts and to publicise its freedom struggle. From the late 1920s on, Jawaharlal Nehru, who had a long-standing interest in world affairs among independence leaders, formulated the Congress stance on international issues. As a member of the interim government in 1946, Nehru articulated India's approach to the world.[45]
India's international influence varied over the years after independence. Indian prestige and moral authority were high in the 1950s and facilitated the acquisition of developmental assistance from both East and West. Although the prestige stemmed from India's nonaligned stance, the nation was unable to prevent Cold War politics from becoming intertwined with interstate relations in South Asia.
In the 1960s and 1970s India's international position among developed and developing countries faded in the course of wars with China and Pakistan, disputes with other countries in South Asia, and India's attempt to balance Pakistan's support from the United States and China by signing the Indo-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation in August 1971. Although India obtained substantial Soviet military and economic aid, which helped to strengthen the nation, India's influence was undercut regionally and internationally by the perception that its friendship with the Soviet Union prevented a more forthright condemnation of the Soviet presence in Afghanistan. In the late 1980s, India improved relations with the United States, other developed countries, and China while continuing close ties with the Soviet Union. Relations with its South Asian neighbours, especially Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Nepal, occupied much of the energies of the Ministry of External Affairs.[46]
In the 1990s, India's economic problems and the demise of the bipolar world political system forced India to reassess its foreign policy and adjust its foreign relations. Previous policies proved inadequate to cope with the serious domestic and international problems facing India. The end of the Cold War gutted the core meaning of nonalignment and left Indian foreign policy without significant direction. The hard, pragmatic considerations of the early 1990s were still viewed within the nonaligned framework of the past, but the disintegration of the Soviet Union removed much of India's international leverage, for which relations with Russia and the other post-Soviet states could not compensate. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, India improved its relations with the United States, Canada, France, Japan and Germany. In 1992, India established formal diplomatic relations with Israel and this relationship grew during the tenures of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government and the subsequent UPA (United Progressive Alliance) governments.[47]
In the mid-1990s, India attracted the world attention towards the Pakistan-backed terrorism in Kashmir. The Kargil War resulted in a major diplomatic victory for India. The United States and European Union recognised the fact that Pakistani military had illegally infiltrated into Indian territory and pressured Pakistan to withdraw from Kargil. Several anti-India militant groups based in Pakistan were labeled as terrorist groups by the United States and European Union.
In 1998, India tested nuclear weapons for the second time (see Pokhran-II) which resulted in several US, Japanese and European sanctions on India. India's then-defence minister,George Fernandes, said that India's nuclear programme was necessary as it provided a deterrence to potential Chinese nuclear threat. Most of the sanctions imposed on India were removed by 2001.[48]
After the 11 September attacks in 2001, Indian intelligence agencies provided the U.S. with significant information on Al-Qaeda and related groups' activities in Pakistan and Afghanistan. India's extensive contribution to the War on Terror, coupled with a surge in its economy, has helped India's diplomatic relations with several countries. Over the past three years, India has held numerous joint military exercises with U.S. and European nations that have resulted in a strengthened U.S.-India and E.U.-India bilateral relationship. India's bilateral trade with Europe and United States has more than doubled in the last five years.[49]
India has been pushing for reforms in the UN and WTO with mixed results. India's candidature for a permanent seat at the UN Security Council is currently backed by several countries including France, Russia,[50] the United Kingdom,[51] Germany, Japan, Brazil,[52] Australia[53] and UAE.[54] In 2004, the United States signed a nuclear co-operation agreement with India even though the latter is not a part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The US argued that India's strong nuclear non-proliferation record made it an exception, however this has not persuaded other Nuclear Suppliers Group members to sign similar deals with India. During a state visit to India in November 2010, US president Barack Obama announced US support for India's bid for permanent membership to UN Security Council[55] as well as India's entry to Nuclear Suppliers Group, Wassenaar Arrangement,Australia Group and Missile Technology Control Regime.[56][57]
Strategic partners[edit]
India's growing economy, strategic location, friendly foreign policy and large and vibrant diaspora has won it more allies than enemies.[58] India has friendly relations with several countries in the developing world. Though India is not a part of any major military alliance, it has close strategic and military relationship with most of the fellow major powers.
Countries considered India's closest include the Russian Federation,[59] Israel,[60] Afghanistan,[61] France,[62] Bhutan[63] andBangladesh.[64] Russia is the largest supplier of military equipment to India, followed by Israel and France.[65] According to some analysts, Israel is set to overtake Russia as India's largest military and strategic partner.[66] The two countries also collaborate extensively in the sphere of counter-terrorism and space technology.[67] India also enjoys strong military relations with several other countries, including the United Kingdom, the United States,[68] Japan,[69] Singapore, Brazil, South Africa and Italy.[70] In addition, India operates an airbase in Tajikistan[71] and signed a landmark defence accord with Qatar in 2008.[72]
India has also forged relationships with developing countries, especially South Africa, Brazil,[73] and Mexico.[74] These countries often represent the interests of the developing countries through economic forums such as the G8+5, IBSA and WTO. India was seen as one of the standard bearers of the developing world and claimed to speak for a collection of more than 30 other developing nations at theDoha Development Round.[75][76] India's "Look East" Policy has helped it develop greater economic and strategic partnership withSoutheast Asian countries, South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan. India also enjoys friendly relations with the Persian Gulf countries and most members of the African Union.
Bilateral and regional relations[edit]
Neighbours[edit]
Afghanistan[edit]
Main article: Afghanistan–India relationsBilateral relations between India and Afghanistan have been traditionally strong and friendly. While India was the only South Asian country to recognise the Soviet-backed Democratic Republic of Afghanistan in the 1980s, its relations were diminished during the Afghan civil wars and the rule of the Islamist Taliban in the 1990s.[77] India aided the overthrow of the Taliban and became the largest regional provider of humanitarian and reconstruction aid.[61][78]
The new democratically elected Afghan government strengthened its ties with India in wake of persisting tensions and problems with Pakistan, which is continuing to shelter and support the Taliban.[61][78] India pursues a policy of close cooperation to bolster its standing as a regional power and contain its rival Pakistan, which it maintains is supporting Islamic militants in Kashmir and other parts of India.[61] India is the largest regional investor in Afghanistan, having committed more than US$2.2 billion for reconstruction purposes.[79]
Bangladesh[edit]
Main article: Bangladesh-India relations
India was the first country to recognise Bangladesh as a separate and independent state, doing so on the 6th of December 1971, ten days before Bangladesh officially declared its independence. India fought alongside the Bangladeshis to liberate Bangladesh from West Pakistan, which was imposing its own culture upon the East Bengalis, in 1971. Bangladesh's relationship with India has been difficult in terms of irrigation and land border disputes post 1976. However, India has enjoyed favourable relationship with Bangladesh during governments formed by the Awami League in 1972 and 1996.
At the outset India's relations with Bangladesh could not have been stronger because of India's unalloyed support for independence and opposition against Pakistan in 1971. During the independence war, many refugees fled to India. When the struggle of resistance matured in November 1971, India also intervened militarily and may have helped bring international attention to the issue through Indira Gandhi's visit to Washington, D.C. Afterwards India furnished relief and reconstruction aid. India extended recognition to Bangladesh prior to the end of the war in 1971 (the second country to do so after Bhutan) and subsequently lobbied others to follow suit. India also withdrew its military from the land of Bangladesh when Sheikh Mujibur Rahman requested Indira Gandhi to do so during the latter's visit to Dhaka in 1972.[citation needed]
Indo-Bangladesh relations have been somewhat less friendly since the fall of Mujib government in August 1975.[80] over the years over issues such as South Talpatti Island, the Tin Bigha corridor and access to Nepal, the Farakka Barrage and water sharing, border conflicts near Tripura and the construction of a fence along most of the border which India explains as security provision against migrants, insurgents and terrorists. Many Bangladeshis feel India likes to play "big brother" to smaller neighbours, including Bangladesh. Bilateral relations warmed in 1996, due to a softer Indian foreign policy and the new Awami League Government. A 30-year water-sharing agreement for the Ganges River was signed in December 1996, after an earlier bilateral water-sharing agreement for the Ganges River lapsed in 1988. Both nations also have cooperated on the issue of flood warning and preparedness. The Bangladesh Government and tribal insurgents signed a peace accord in December 1997, which allowed for the return of tribal refugees who had fled into India, beginning in 1986, to escape violence caused by an insurgency in their homeland in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. TheBangladesh Army maintains a very strong presence in the area to this day. The army is increasingly concerned about a growing problem of cultivation of illegal drugs.
There are also small pieces of land along the border region that Bangladesh is diplomatically trying to reclaim. Padua, part of Sylhet Division before 1971, has been under Indian control since the war in 1971. This small strip of land was re-occupied by the BDR in 2001, but later given back to India after Bangladesh government decided to solve the problem through diplomatic negotiations. The Indian New Moore island no longer exists, but Bangladesh repeatedly claims it [10]) as part of the Satkhira district of Bangladesh.
In recent years India has increasingly complained that Bangladesh does not secure its border properly. It fears an increasing flow of poor Bangladeshis and it accuses Bangladesh of harbouring Indian separatist groups like ULFA and alleged terrorist groups. The Bangladesh government has refused to accept these allegations.[81][82] India estimates that over 20 million Bangladeshis are living illegally in India.[83] One Bangladeshi official responded that "there is not a single Bangladeshi migrant in India".[84] Since 2002, India has been constructing an India - Bangladesh Fence along much of the 2500 mile border.[85] The failure to resolve migration disputes bears a human cost for illegal migrants, such as imprisonment and health risks (namely HIV/Aids).[86]
Bhutan[edit]
Main article: Bhutan–India relations
Historically, there have been close ties with India. Both countries signed a friendship treaty in 1949, where India would assist Bhutan in foreign relations. On 8 February 2007, the Indo-Bhutan Friendship Treaty was substantially revised under the Bhutanese King, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. Whereas in the Treaty of 1949 Article 2 read as "The Government of India undertakes to exercise no interference in the internal administration of Bhutan. On its part the Government of Bhutan agrees to be guided by the advice of the Government of India in regard to its external relations."
In the revised treaty it now reads as, "In keeping with the abiding ties of close friendship and cooperation between Bhutan and India, the Government of the Kingdom of Bhutan and the Government of the Republic of India shall cooperate closely with each other on issues relating to their national interests. Neither government shall allow the use of its territory for activities harmful to the national security and interest of the other". The revised treaty also includes in it the preamble "Reaffirming their respect for each other's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity", an element that was absent in the earlier version. The Indo-Bhutan Friendship Treaty of 2007 strengthens Bhutan's status as an independent and sovereign nation.
Tata Power is building a hydro-electric dam. This dam will greatly develop the Bhutanese economy by providing employment, and by selling electricity to India and fulfilling India's burgeoning energy needs. Due to this dam Bhutan's economy grew 20%, the second highest growth rate in the world.
Burma/Myanmar[edit]
Main article: Burma–India relations
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
BurmaIndia was one of the leading supporters of Burmese independence and established diplomatic relations after Burma's independence from Great Britain in 1948. For many years, Indo-Burmese relations were strong due to cultural links, flourishing commerce, common interests in regional affairs and the presence of a significant Indian community in Burma.[87] India provided considerable support when Burma struggled with regional insurgencies. However, the overthrow of the democratic government by the Military of Burma led to strains in ties. Along with much of the world, India condemned the suppression of democracy and Burma ordered the expulsion of the Burmese Indian community, increasing its own isolation from the world.[87][88] Only China maintained close links with Burma while India supported the pro-democracy movement.[87][89][90]
However, due to geo-political concerns, India revived its relations and recognised the military Juntaruling Burma in 1993, overcoming strains over drug trafficking, the suppression of democracy and the rule of the military junta in Burma. Burma is situated to the south of the states of Mizoram, Manipur,Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh in Northeast India. and the proximity of the People's Republic of China gives strategic importance to Indo-Burmese relations. The Indo-Burmese border stretches over 1,600 kilometres[87] and some insurgents in North-east India seek refuge in Burma. Consequently, India has been keen on increasing military cooperation with Burma in its counter-insurgency activities. In 2001, the Indian Army completed the construction of a major road along its border with Burma. India has also been building major roads, highways, ports and pipelines within Burma in an attempt to increase its strategic influence in the region and also to counter China's growing strides in the Indochina peninsula. Indian companies have also sought active participation in oil and natural gas exploration in Burma.In February 2007, India announced a plan to develop the Sittwe port, which would enable ocean access from Indian Northeastern states like Mizoram, via the Kaladan River.
India is a major customer of Burmese oil and gas. In 2007, Indian exports to Burma totaled US$185 million, while its imports from Burma were valued at around US$810 million, consisting mostly of oil and gas.[91] India has granted US$100 million credit to fund highway infrastructure projects in Burma, while US$ 57 million has been offered to upgrade Burmese railways. A further US$27 million in grants has been pledged for road and rail projects.[92] India is one of the few countries that has provided military assistance to the Burmese junta.[93] However, there has been increasing pressure on India to cut some of its military supplies to Burma.[94] Relations between the two remain close which was evident in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, when India was one of the few countries whose relief and rescue aid proposals were accepted by Burma's ruling junta.[95]
Both India and the PRC mantain embassies in Rangoon and Consulate-Generals in Mandalay.
China[edit]
Main article: China–India relations
Despite lingering suspicions remaining from the 1962 Sino-Indian War and continuing boundary disputes over Aksai Chin and Arunachal Pradesh, Sino-Indian relations have improved gradually since 1988. Both countries have sought to reduce tensions along the frontier, expand trade and cultural ties, and normalise relations.
A series of high-level visits between the two nations have helped improve relations. In December 1996, PRC President Jiang Zemin visited India during a tour of South Asia. While in New Delhi, he signed with the Indian Prime Minister a series of confidence-building measures for the disputed borders. Sino-Indian relations suffered a brief setback in May 1998 when the Indian Defence minister justified the country's nuclear tests by citing potential threats from the PRC. However, in June 1999, during the Kargil crisis, then-External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh visited Beijing and stated that India did not consider China a threat. By 2001, relations between India and the PRC were on the mend, and the two sides handled the move from Tibet to India of the 17th Karmapa in January 2000 with delicacy and tact. In 2003, India formally recognised Tibet as a part of China, and China recognised Sikkim as a formal part of India in 2004.
Since 2004, the economic rise of both China and India has also helped forge closer relations between the two. Sino-Indian trade reached US$36 billion in 2007, making China the single largest trading partner of India.[97] The increasing economic reliance between India and China has also bought the two nations closer politically, with both India and China eager to resolve their boundary dispute.[98]They have also collaborated on several issues ranging from WTO's Doha round in 2008[99] to regional free trade agreement.[100] Similar to Indo-US nuclear deal, India and China have also agreed to cooperate in the field of civilian nuclear energy.[101] However, China's economic interests have clashed with those of India. Both the countries are the largest Asian investors in Africa[102] and have competed for control over its large natural resources.[103] India and China agreed to take bilateral trade up to US$100 billion on a recent visit by Wen Jiabao to India.
Maldives[edit]
Main article: India–Maldives relations
India enjoys a considerable influence over Maldives' foreign policy and provides extensive security co-operation especially after theOperation Cactus in 1988 during which India repelled Tamil mercenaries who invaded the country. As founder member in 1985 of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, SAARC, which brings together Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, the country plays a very active role in SAARC. The Maldives has taken the lead in calling for a South Asian Free Trade Agreement, the formulation of a Social Charter, the initiation of informal political consultations in SAARC forums, the lobbying for greater action on environmental issues, the proposal of numerous human rights measures such as the regional convention on child rights and for setting up a SAARC Human Rights Resource Centre. The Maldives is also an advocate of greater international profile for SAARC such as through formulating common positions at the UN.
India is starting the process to bring the island country into India's security grid. The move comes after the moderate Islamic nation approached New Delhi earlier this year over fears that one of its island resorts could be taken over by terrorists given its lack of military assets and surveillance capabilities.[104] India also signed an agreement with the Maldives in 2011 which is centred around the following:
- India shall permanently base two helicopters in the country to enhance its surveillance capabilities and ability to respond swiftly to threats. One helicopter from the Coast Guard was handed over during Antony's visit while another from the Navy will be cleared for transfer shortly.
- Maldives has coastal radars on only two of its 26 atolls. India will help set up radars on all 26 for seamless coverage of approaching vessels and aircraft.
- The coastal radar chain in Maldives will be networked with the Indian coastal radar system. India has already undertaken a project to install radars along its entire coastline. The radar chains of the two countries will be interlinked and a central control room in India's Coastal Command will get a seamless radar picture.
- The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) will carry out regular Dornier sorties over the island nation to look out for suspicious movements or vessels. The Southern Naval Command will facillitate the inclusion of Maldives into the Indian security grid.
- Military teams from Maldives will visit the tri-services Andaman & Nicobar Command (ANC) to observe how India manages security and surveillance of the critical island chain.
Nepal[edit]
Main article: India–Nepal relations
Relations between India and Nepal are close yet fraught with difficulties stemming from geography, economics, the problems inherent in big power-small power relations, and common ethnic and linguistic identities that overlap the two countries' borders. In 1950 New Delhi and Kathmandu initiated their intertwined relationship with the Treaty of Peace and Friendship and accompanying letters that defined security relations between the two countries, and an agreement governing both bilateral trade and trade transiting Indian soil. The 1950 treaty and letters stated that "neither government shall tolerate any threat to the security of the other by a foreign aggressor" and obligated both sides "to inform each other of any serious friction or misunderstanding with any neighbouring state likely to cause any breach in the friendly relations subsisting between the two governments". Which granted the Indian and Nepali People not mandatory to have Work permit for any economic activity such as work and business related activity. These accords cemented a "special relationship" between India and Nepal that granted Nepal preferential economic treatment and provided Nepalese in India the same economic and educational opportunities as Indian citizens.
Pakistan[edit]
Main article: India–Pakistan relations
Despite historical, cultural and ethnic links between them, relations between India and Pakistan have been plagued by years of mistrust and suspicion ever since the partition of India in 1947. The principal source of contention between India and its western neighbor has been the Kashmir conflict. After an invasion by Pashtun tribesmen and Pakistani paramilitary forces, the Hindu Maharaja of the Dogra Kingdom of Jammu and Kashmir, Hari Singh, and its Muslim Prime Minister, Sheikh Abdullah, signed an Instrument of Accessionwith New Delhi. The First Kashmir War started after the Indian Army entered Srinagar, the capital of the state, to secure the area from the invading forces. The war ended in December 1948 with the Line of Control dividing the erstwhile princely state into territories administered by Pakistan (northern and western areas) and India (southern, central and northeastern areas). Pakistan contested the legality of the Instrument of Accession since the Dogra Kingdom has signed a standstill agreement with it. The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 started following the failure of Pakistan's Operation Gibraltar, which was designed to infiltrate forces into Jammu and Kashmir to precipitate an insurgency against rule by India. The five-week war caused thousands of casualties on both sides. It ended in a United Nations (UN) mandated ceasefire and the subsequent issuance of the Tashkent Declaration. India and Pakistan went to war again in 1971, this time the conflict being over East Pakistan. The large-scale atrocities committed there by the Pakistan army led to millions of Bengali refugees pouring over into India. India, along with the Mukti Bahini, defeated Pakistan and the Pakistani forces surrendered on the eastern front. The war resulted in the creation of Bangladesh.
In 1998, India carried out the Pokhran-II nuclear tests which was followed by Pakistan's Chagai-I tests. Following the Lahore Declarationin February 1999, relations briefly improved. A few months later, however, Pakistani paramilitary forces and Pakistani Army, infiltrated in large numbers into the Kargil district of Indian Kashmir. This initiated the Kargil conflict after India moved in thousands of troops to successfully flush out the infiltrators. Although the conflict did not result in a full-scale war between India and Pakistan, relations between the two reached all-time low which worsened even further following the involvement of Pakistan-based terrorists in the hijacking of the Indian Airlines IC814 plane in December 1999. Attempts to normalise relations, such as the Agra summit held in July 2001, failed. An attack on the Indian Parliament in December 2001, which was blamed on Pakistan, which had condemned the attack[105]caused a military standoff between the two countries which lasted for nearly a year raising fears of a nuclear conflict. However, a peace process, initiated in 2003, led to improved relations in the following years.
Since the initiation of the peace process, several confidence-building-measures (CBMs) between India and Pakistan have taken shape. The Samjhauta Express and Delhi–Lahore Bus service are two of these successful measures which have played a crucial role in expanding people-to-people contact between the two countries.[106] The initiation of Srinagar–Muzaffarabad Bus service in 2005 and opening of a historic trade route across the Line of Control in 2008 further reflects increasing eagerness between the two sides to improve relations. Although bilateral trade between India and Pakistan was a modest US$1.7 billion in March 2007, it is expected to cross US$10 billion by 2010. After the Kashmir earthquake in 2005, India sent aid to affected areas in Pakistani Kashmir and Punjab as well as Indian Kashmir.[107]
The 2008 Mumbai attacks seriously undermined the relations between the two countries. India alleged Pakistan of harboring militants on their soil, while Pakistan vehemently denies such claims. Relations are currently hampered since India has sent a list of 40 alleged fugitive in various terror strikes to Pakistan, expecting them to be handed over to India. Pakistan, on the other hand, has declared that it has no intentions whatsoever of carrying out their extradition.
Sri Lanka[edit]
Main article: India–Sri Lanka relations
Bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and India have been generally friendly, but were affected by the Sri Lankan civil war and by the failure of Indian intervention during the Sri Lankan civil war. India is Sri Lanka's only neighbour, separated by the Palk Strait; both nations occupy a strategic position in South Asia and have sought to build a common security umbrella in the Indian Ocean.[108]
India-Sri Lanka relations have undergone a qualitative and quantitative transformation in the recent past. Political relations are close, trade and investments have increased dramatically, infrastructural linkages are constantly being augmented, defence collaboration has increased and there is a general, broad-based improvement across all sectors of bilateral cooperation. India was the first country to respond to Sri Lanka's request for assistance after the tsunami in December 2004. In July 2006, India evacuated 430 Sri Lankan nationals from Lebanon, first to Cyprus by Indian Navy ships and then to Delhi and Colombo by special Air India flights.
There exists a broad consensus within the Sri Lankan polity on the primacy of India in Sri Lanka's external relations matrix. Both the major political parties in Sri Lanka, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the United Nationalist Party have contributed to the rapid development of bilateral relations in the last ten years. Sri Lanka has supported India's candidature to the permanent membership of the UN Security Council.[109]
Asia–Pacific[edit]
North Korea[edit]
Main article: India-North Korea relationsIndia and North Korea have growing trade and diplomatic relations. India maintains a fully functioning embassy in Pyongyang, and North Korea has an embassy in New Delhi. India has said that it wants the "reunification" of Korea[110]
Brunei[edit]
Brunei has a high commission in New Delhi, and India has a high commission in Bandar Seri Begawan. Both countries are full members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
Australia[edit]
Main article: Australia–India relations
The strongest ties between these two states is the commonwealth connexion. Cricketing and Bollywood ties also help foster relations as in the frequent travel for games, and, more importantly, the presence of Australian cricketers in India for commercial gain. This was further enhanced with the IPL, and, to a lesser degree, the ICL. Bollywood has also improved ties as with John Howard's visit to Mumbai to increase tourism to Australia.[111] Furthermore, there is a going strategic connexion to forming an "Asian NATO" with India, Japan, the US and Australia.[112] The bilateral agreements have worked out for all but the Indo-Australian angle, though this has been hurt by India's refusal to sign the NPT and Australia's consequent refusal to provide India with uranium until the latter do so. However Australia has now cleared uranium sales to India by Labour party decision in Australian parliament and by this development the relations between both the commonwealth nations are set to improve. The Australian and Indian militaries have already worked well together. Of late the relations between the two countries were jolted, with attacks on Indian Community students in Melbourne, Australia. Indian Government lodged strong protests with the Australian Government. Australian Prime Minister Mr. Kevin Rudd said that "Australia valued its education system and International Students are valued more here in Australia." Mr. Rudd though said that his Govt. has ordered a thorough probe into the attacks and also condemned it in strongest possible terms, but no significant break through has been achieved. Under the leadership of Incumbent Prime Minister of Australia Julia gillard the relations between both the nations have significantly improved on part due to her holistic approach in relations.[113][114]
Fiji[edit]
Main article: Fiji–India relations
Fijis relationship with the Republic of India is often seen by observers against the backdrop of the sometimes tense relations between its indigenous people and the 44 percent of the population who are of Indian descent. India has used its influence in international forums such as the Commonwealth of Nations and United Nations on behalf of ethnic Indians in Fiji, lobbying for sanctions against Fiji in the wake of the 1987 coups and the 2000 coup, both of which removed governments, one dominated and one led, by Indo-Fijians.
Japan[edit]
Main article: India–Japan relations
India-Japan relations have always been strong. India has culturally influenced Japan throughBuddhism. During the Indian Independence Movement, the Japanese Imperial Army helpedNetaji Subhash Chandra Bose's Indian National Army. Relations have remained warm since India's independence. Japanese companies, like Sony, Toyota, and Honda, have manufacturing facilities in India, and with the growth of the Indian economy, India is a big market for Japanese firms. The most prominent Japanese company to have a big investment in India is automobiles giant Suzuki which is in partnership with Indian automobiles companyMaruti Suzuki, the largest car manufacturer in India. Honda was also a partner in "Hero Honda", one of the largest motor cycle sellers in the world (the companies split in 2011[115]).
According to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's arc of freedom theory, it is in Japan's interests to develop closer ties with India, world's most populous democracy, while its relations withChina remain chilly. To this end, Japan has funded many infrastructure projects in India, most notably in New Delhi's metro subway system.[116] In December 2006, Prime MinisterManmohan Singh's visit to Japan culminated in the signing of the "Joint Statement Towards Japan-India Strategic and Global Partnership". Japan has funded some major infrastructure projects in India, most notably the Delhi Metro subway system. Indian applicants were welcomed in 2006 to the JET Programme, starting with just one slot available in 2006 and 41 in 2007. Also, in 2007, the Japanese Self Defence Forces took part in a naval exercise in the Indian Ocean, known as Malabar 2007, which also involved the naval forces of India, Australia, Singapore and the United States.
In October 2008, Japan signed an agreement with India under which it would grant the latter a low-interest loan worth US$4.5 billion to construct a high-speed rail line between Delhi and Mumbai. This is the single largest overseas project being financed by Japan and reflects growing economic partnership between the two.[117] India and Japan signed a security cooperation agreement[118] in which both will hold military exercises, police the Indian Ocean and conduct military-to-military exchanges on fighting terrorism, making India one of only three countries, the other two being the United States and Australia, with which Japan has such a security pact.[119] There are 25,000 Indians in Japan as of 2008.
Laos[edit]
In recent years, India has endeavoured to build relations, with this small Southeast Asian nation. They have strong military relations, and India shall be building an Airforce Academy in Laos.[120]
Nauru[edit]
Main article: India–Nauru relations
India and Nauru relations have been cordial and friendly. Leaders of both countries have been meeting on the sidelines of some of the international forums of which both the nations are part of such as the United Nations and the Non-Aligned Movement.
Indonesia[edit]
Main article: India–Indonesia relations
The ties between Indonesia and India date back to the times of the Ramayana,[121]"Yawadvipa" (Java) is mentioned in India's earliest epic, the Ramayana. Sugriva, the chief ofRama's army dispatched his men to Yawadvipa, the island of Java, in search of Sita.[122]Indonesians had absorbed many aspects of Indian culture since almost two millennia ago. The most obvious trace is the large adoption of Sanskrit into Indonesian language. Several of Indonesian toponymy has Indian parallel or origin, such as Madura with Mathura, Serayu andSarayu rivers, Kalingga from Kalinga Kingdom, and Ngayogyakarta from Ayodhya. IndianisedHindu–Buddhist kingdoms, such as Kalingga, Srivijaya, Medang i Bhumi Mataram, Sunda,Kadiri, Singhasari and Majapahit were the predominant governments in Indonesia, and lasted from 200[123] to the 1500s, with the last remaining being in Bali. The example of profound Hindu-Buddhist influences in Indonesian history are the 9th century Prambanan andBorobudur temples.
In 1950, the first President of Indonesia – Sukarno called upon the peoples of Indonesia and India to "intensify the cordial relations" that had existed between the two countries "for more than 1000 years" before they had been "disrupted" by colonial powers.[124] In the spring of 1966, the foreign ministers of both countries began speaking again of an era of friendly relations. India had supported Indonesian independence and Nehru had raised the Indonesian question in the United Nations Security Council.
India has an embassy in Jakarta[125] and Indonesia operates an embassy in Delhi.[126] India regards Indonesia as a key member of ASEAN. Today, both countries maintain cooperative and friendly relations. India and Indonesia is one of the few (and also one of the largest) democracies in Asian region which can be projected as a real democracy.[127] Both nations had agreed to establish a strategic partnership.[128] As a fellow Asian democracies that shares common value, it is natural for both countries to nurture and foster strategic alliance. Indonesia and India are member states of the G-20, the E7 (countries), the Non-aligned Movement, and the United Nations.
Malaysia[edit]
Main article: India–Malaysia relations
India has a high commission in Kuala Lumpur, and Malaysia has a high commission in New Delhi. Both countries are full members of the Commonwealth of Nations and the Asian Union. India and Malaysia are also connected by various cultural and historical ties that date back to antiquity. The two countries are on friendly terms with each other and Malaysia harbours a small population of Indian immigrants. Mahathir bin Mohamad the fourth and longest serving Prime Minister of Malaysia is of Indian origin. His father Mohamad Iskandar, is a Malayalee Muslim who migrated from Kerala and his mother Wan Tampawan, is a Malay.[129]
Philippines[edit]
Main article: India–Philippines relations
Through the Srivijaya and Majapahit empires, Hindu influence has been visible in Philippine history from the 10th to 14th century A.D. During the 18th century, there was robust trade between Manila and the Coromandel Coast of Bengal, involving Philippine exports of tobacco, silk, cotton, indigo, sugar cane and coffee. The Philippines established diplomatic relations with India on 16 November 1949. The first Philippine envoy to India was the late Foreign Secretary Narciso Ramos. Seven years after India's independence in 1947, the Philippines and India signed a Treaty of Friendship on 11 July 1952 in Manila to strengthen the friendly relations existing between the two countries. Soon after, the Philippine Legation in New Delhi was established and then elevated to an Embassy.[130] However, due to foreign policy differences as a result of the bipolar alliance structure of the Cold War, the development of bilateral relations was stunted. It was only in 1976 that relations started to normalise when Mr. Aditya Birla, one of India's successful industrialists, met with then President Ferdinand E. Marcos to explore possibilities of setting up joint ventures in the Philippines. Today, like India, the Philippines is the leading voice-operated business process outsourcing (BPO) source in terms of revenue (US$ 5.7) and number of people (500,000) employed in the sector. In partnership with the Philippines, India has 20 IT/BPO companies in the Philippines. Philippines-India bilateral trade stood at US$ 986.60 million dollars in 2009. In 2004 it was US$ 600 million. Both countries aim to reach US$1 billion by 2010. There are 60,000 Indians living in the Philippines. The Philippines and India signed in October 2007 the Framework for Bilateral Cooperation which created the PH-India JCBC. It has working groups in trade, agriculture, tourism, health, renewable energy and a regular policy consultation mechanism and security dialogue.
Singapore[edit]
Main article: India–Singapore relations
India and Singapore share long-standing cultural, commercial and strategic relations, with Singapore being a part of the "Greater India" cultural and commercial region. More than 300,000 people of Indian origin live in Singapore. Following its independence in 1965, Singapore was concerned with China-backed communist threats as well as domination fromMalaysia and Indonesia and sought a close strategic relationship with India, which it saw as a counterbalance to Chinese influence and a partner in achieving regional security.[131]Singapore had always been an important strategic trading post, giving India trade access toMaritime Southeast Asia and the Far East. Although the rival positions of both nations over the Vietnam War and the Cold War caused consternation between India and Singapore, their relationship expanded significantly in the 1990s;[131] Singapore was one of the first to respond to India's "Look East" Policy of expanding its economic, cultural and strategic ties in Southeast Asia to strengthen its standing as a regional power.[131] Singapore, and especially, the Singaporean Foreign Minister, George Yeo, have taken an interest, in re-establishing the ancient Indian university, Nalanda University.
Singapore is the 8th largest source of investment in India and the largest amongst ASEAN member nations.[131][132] It is also India's 9th biggest trading partner as of 2005–06.[131] Its cumulative investment in India totals US$ 3 billion as of 2006 and is expected to rise to US 5 billion by 2010 and US 10 billion by 2015.[131][133][134] India's economic liberalisation and its "Look East" policy have led to a major expansion in bilateral trade, which grew from USD 2.2 billion in 2001 to US 9–10 billion in 2006 – a 400% growth in span of five years – and to USD 50 billion by 2010.[131][133][134] Singapore accounts for 38% of India's trade with ASEAN member nations and 3.4% of its total foreign trade.[131] India's main exports to Singapore in 2005 included petroleum, gemstones, jewellery, machinery and its imports from Singapore included electronic goods, organic chemicals and metals. More than half of Singapore's exports to India are basically "re-exports" – items that had been imported from India.[131][132]
South Korea[edit]
Main article: India–South Korea relations
The cordial relationship between the two countries extends back to 48AD, when Queen Suro, or Princess Heo, travelled from the kingdom of Ayodhya to Korea.[135] According to the Samguk Yusa, the princess had a dream about a heavenly king who was awaiting heaven's anointed ride. After Princess Heo had the dream, she asked her parents, the king and queen, for permission to set out and seek the man, which the king and queen urged with the belief that god orchestrated the whole fate.[136] Upon approval, she set out on a boat, carrying gold, silver, a tea plant, and a stone which calmed the waters.[135] Archeologists discovered a stone with two fish kissing each other, a symbol of the Gaya kingdom that is unique to the Mishra royal family in Ayodhya, India. This royal link provides further evidence that there was an active commercial engagements between India and Korea since the queen's arrival to Korea.[135] Current descendants live in the city of Kimhae as well as abroad in America's state of New Jersey and Kentucky. Many of them became prominent and well-known around the world like President Kim Dae Jung, Prime Minister Jong Pil Kim.
The relations between the countries have been relatively limited, although much progress arose during the three decades. Since the formal establishment of the diplomatic ties between two countries in 1973, several trade agreements have been reached. Trade between the two nations has increased exponentially, exemplified by the $530 million during the fiscal year of 1992–1993, and the $10 billion during 2006–2007.[137] During the 1997 Asian financial crisis, South Korean businesses sought to increase access to the global markets, and began trade investments with India.[137] The last two presidential visits from South Korea to India were in 1996 and 2006,[138] and the embassy works between the two countries are seen as needing improvements.[139] Recently, there have been acknowledgements in the Korean public and political spheres that expanding relations with India should be a major economical and political priority for South Korea. Much of the economic investments of South Korea have been drained into China;[140] however, South Korea is currently the fifth largest source of investment in India.[141] To the Times of India, President Roh voiced his opinion that cooperation between India's software and Korea's IT industries would bring very efficient and successful outcomes.[138] The two countries agreed to shift their focus to the revision of the visa policies between the two countries, expansion of trade, and establishment of free trade agreement to encourage further investment between the two countries. Korean companies such as LG, Hyundai andSamsung have established manufacturing and service facilities in India, and several Korean construction companies won grants for a portion of the many infrastructural building plans in India, such as the "National Highway Development Project".[141] Tata Motor's purchase of Daewoo Commercial Vehicles at the cost of $102 million highlights the India's investments in Korea, which consist mostly of subcontracting.[141]
Taiwan[edit]
Main article: Republic of China–India relations
The bilateral relations between India and Taiwan (officially Republic of China) have improved since the 1990s despite both nations not maintaining official diplomatic relations,[90][141]India recognises only the People's Republic of China and not the Republic of China's contention of being the legitimate government of territorial China – a conflict that emerged after the Chinese Civil War (1945–49). However, India's economic & Commercial links as well as people-to-people contacts with Taiwan have expanded in recent years.[141]
The most significant evidence of Taiwan-India relations warming up was provided when ROC President Ma Ying-jeou made a stopover in Mumbai en route to Africa in early April, 2012, an event that went almost unnoticed by India's media. The visit, part of a phenomenon called "refueling diplomacy," is historic because India had never allowed a serving ROC president to land on Indian soil.[141]
Thailand[edit]
Main article: India–Thailand relations
India's Look East policy, saw India grow relations with ASEAN countries including Thailand, and Thailand's Look West policy, also saw it grow its relations with India. Both countries are members of BIMSTEC. Indian Prime Ministers Rajiv Gandhi, P.V. Narasimha Rao,Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and Manmohan Singh, have visited Thailand, which were reciprocated by contemporary Thai Prime MinistersChatichai Choonhavan, Thaksin Sinawatra, and Surayud Chulanont. In 2003, a Free Trade Agreement was signed between the two countries. India, is the 13th largest investor in Thailand. The spheres of trade are in chemicals, pharmaceuticals, textiles, nylon, tyre cord, real estate, rayon fibres, paper grade pulps, steel wires, and rods. However, IT services, and manufacturing, are the main spheres. Through Buddhism, India, has culturally influenced Thailand. The Indian epics, Mahabharata, and Ramayana, are popular and are widely taught in schools as part of the curriculum in Thailand. The example can also be seen in temples around Thailand, where the story of Ramayana and renowned Indian folk stories are depicted on the temple wall. Thailand, has become a big tourist destination for Indians.
Vietnam[edit]
Main article: India–Vietnam relations
India supported Vietnam's independence from France, opposed U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War and supported unification of Vietnam. India established official diplomatic relations in 1972 and maintained friendly relations, especially in the wake of Vietnam's hostile relations with the People's Republic of China, which had become India's strategic rival.[142]
India granted the "Most Favoured Nation" status to Vietnam in 1975[142] and both nations signed a bilateral trade agreement in 1978 and the Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (BIPPA) on 8 March 1997.[143] In 2007, a fresh joint declaration was issued during the state visit of the Prime Minister of Vietnam Nguyen Tan Dung.[144] Bilateral trade has increased rapidly since the liberalisation of the economies of both Vietnam and India.[142] India is the 13th-largest exporter to Vietnam, with exports have grown steadily from US$ 11.5 million in 1985–86 to USD 395.68 million by 2003.[143] Vietnam's exports to India rose to USD 180 million, including agricultural products, handicrafts, textiles, electronics and other goods.[145] Between 2001 and 2006, the volume of bilateral trade expanded at 20–30% per annum to reach $1 billion by 2006.[146][147] Continuing the rapid pace of growth, bilateral trade is expected to rise to $2 billion by 2008, two years ahead of the official target.[147][148] India and Vietnam have also expanded cooperation in information technology, education and collaboration of the respective national space programmes.[144] Direct air links and lax visaregulations have been established to bolster tourism.[149]
India and Vietnam are members of the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation, created to develop to enhance close ties between India and nations of Southeast Asia. Vietnam has supported India's bid to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council and join the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).[150] In the 2003 joint declaration, India and Vietnam envisaged creating an "Arc of Advantage and Prosperity" in Southeast Asia;[144] to this end, Vietnam has backed a more important relationship and role between India and theAssociation of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its negotiation of an Indo–ASEAN free trade agreement.[142][144] India and Vietnam have also built strategic partnerships, including extensive cooperation on developing nuclear power, enhancing regional security and fighting terrorism, transnational crime and drug trafficking.[90][144][145]
ASEAN[edit]
For more details on this topic, see ASEAN–India Free Trade Area.India's interaction with ASEAN in the Cold War–era was very limited. India declined to get associated with ASEAN in the 1960s when full membership was offered even before the grouping was formed.[44]
It is only with the formulation of the Look East policy in the last decade (1992), India had started giving this region due importance in the foreign policy. India became a sectoral dialogue partner with ASEAN in 1992, a full dialogue partner in 1995, a member of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in 1996, and a summit-level partner (on par with China, Japan and Korea) in 2002.
The first India–ASEAN Business Summit was held at New Delhi in October 2002. The then Prime Minister A. B. Vajpayee addressed this meet and since then this business summit has become an annual feature before the India–ASEAN Summits, as a forum for networking and exchange of business experiences between policy makers and business leaders from ASEAN and India.
Four India-ASEAN Summits, first in 2002 at Phnom Penh (Cambodia), second in 2003 at Bali, Indonesia, third in 2004 at Vientiane, Laos, and the fourth in 2005 at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, have taken place.
The following agreements have been entered into with ASEAN:
- Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation (for establishing a FTA in a time frame of 10 years) was concluded in Bali in 2003.
- An ASEAN-India Joint Declaration for Cooperation to Combat International Terrorism has been adopted.
- India has acceded to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (TAC) in 2003, on which ASEAN was formed initially (in 1967).
- Agreement on "India-ASEAN Partnership for Peace, Progress and Shared Prosperity" was signed at the 3rd ASEAN-India Summit in November 2004.
- Setting up of Entrepreneurship Development Centres in ASEAN member states – Cambodia, Burma, Laos, and Vietnam. (The one in Laos is already functional)
The following proposals were announced by the Prime Minister at the 4th ASEAN-India Summit:
- Setting up centres for English Language Training (ELT) in Cambodia, Laos, Burma and Vietnam.
- Setting up a tele-medicine and tele-education network for Cambodia, Burma, Laos and Vietnam.
- Organising special training courses for diplomats from ASEAN countries.
- Organising an India-ASEAN Technology Summit in 2006.
- Organising education fairs and road shows in ASEAN countries.
- Conducting an India-ASEAN IT Ministerial and Industry Forum in 2006.
The ASEAN region has an abundance of natural resources and significant technological skills. These provide a natural base for the integration between ASEAN and India in both trade and investment. The present level of bilateral trade with ASEAN of nearly US $ 18 billion is reportedly increasing by about 25% per year. India hopes to reach the level of US $ 30 billion by 2007. India is also improving its relations with the help of other policy decisions like offers of lines of credit, better connectivity through air (open skies policy), rail and road links.[44]
Americas[edit]
India's commonalities with developing nations in Latin America, especially Brazil and Mexico have continued to grow. India and Brazil continue to work together on the reform of Security Council through the G4 nations while have also increased strategic and economic cooperation through the IBSA Dialogue Forum. The process of finalising Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) with MERCOSUR (Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay) is on the itinerary and negotiations are being held with Chile.[151] Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was the guest of honour at the 2004 Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi.[152]
Argentina[edit]
Formal relations between both the countries were first established in 1949. India has an embassy in Buenos Aires and Argentina has an embassy in New Delhi. The current Indian Ambassador to Argentina (concurrently accredited to Uruguay and Paraguay) is R Viswanathan. According to the Ministry of External Affairs of the Government of India, "Under the 1968 Visa agreement, (Argentine)fees for transit and tourist visas have been abolished. Under the new visa agreement signed during Argentine Presidential visit in October 2009, it has been agreed that five year multi-entry business visas would be given free of cost. The Embassy of India in Buenos Aires gives Cafe Con Visa (coffee with visa) to Argentine visitors. The applicants are invited for coffee and visa is given immediately. This has been praised by the Argentine media, public and the Foreign Minister himself.[153]
Barbados[edit]
India and Barbados established diplomatic relations on 30 November 1966 (the date of Barbados' national independence).[154] On that date, the government of India gifted Barbados the throne in Barbados' national House of Assembly.[155] India is represented in Barbados through its embassy in Suriname[156][157][158] and an Indian consulate in Holetown, St. James.[159] In 2011-12 the Indian-based firm Era's Lucknow Medical College and Hospital, established the American University of Barbados (AUB), as the island's first Medical School for international students. Today around 3,000 persons from India call Barbados home. Two-thirds are from the India's Surat district of Gujarat known as Suratis. Most of the Suratis are involved in trading. The rest are mainly Sindhis.
Brazil[edit]
Main article: Brazil–India relations
A group called the Filhos de Gandhi (Sons of Gandhi) participates regularly in the carnival in Salvador. Private Brazilian organisations occasionally invite Indian cultural troupes.
In recent years,[when?] relations between Brazil and India have grown considerably and co-operation between the two countries has been extended to such diverse areas as science and technology, pharmaceuticals and space. The two-way trade in 2007 nearly tripled to US$ 3.12 billion from US$ 1.2 billion in 2004. India attaches tremendous importance to its relationship with this Latin American giant and hopes to see the areas of co-operation expand in the coming years.
Both countries want the participation of developing countries in the UNSC permanent membership since the underlying philosophy for both of them are: UNSC should be more democratic, legitimate and representative – the G4 is a novel grouping for this realisation. Brazil and India are deeply committed toIBSA (South-South cooperation) initiatives and attach utmost importance to this trilateral cooperation between the three large, multi-ethnic, multi-racial and multi-religious developing countries, which are bound by the common principle of pluralism and democracy.
Canada[edit]
Main article: Canada–India relations
Indo-Canadian relations, are the longstanding bilateral relations between India and Canada, which are built upon a "mutual commitment to democracy", "pluralism", and "people-to-people links", according to the government of Canada. In 2004, bilateral trade between India and Canada was at about C$2.45 billion. However, the botched handling of the Air India investigation and the case in general suffered a setback to Indo-Canadian relations. India's Smiling Buddha nuclear test led to connexions between the two countries being frozen, with allegations that India broke the terms of the Colombo Plan. Although Jean Chrétien and Roméo LeBlanc both visited India in the late 1990s, relations were again halted after the Pokhran-II tests.
Canada-India relations have been on an upward trajectory since 2005. Governments at all levels, private-sector organisations, academic institutes in two countries, and people-to-people contacts—especially diaspora networks—have contributed through individual and concerted efforts to significant improvements in the bilateral relationship. The two governments have agreed on important policy frameworks to advance the bilateral relationship. In particular, the Nuclear Cooperation Agreement (signed in June 2010) and the current successful negotiations of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) constitute a watershed in Canada-India relations. The two governments have attempted to make up for lost time and are eager to complete CEPA negotiations by 2013 and ensure its ratification by 2014. After conclusion of CEPA, Canada and India must define the areas for their partnership which will depend on their ability to convert common interests into common action and respond effectively for steady cooperation. For example, during "pull-aside" meetings between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Stephen Harper at the G-20 summit in Mexico in June 2012, and an earlier meeting in Toronto between External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna and John Baird, the leaders discussed developing a more comprehensive partnership going beyond food security and including the possibility of tie-ups in the energy sector, mainly hydrocarbon.
Colombia[edit]
Main article: Colombia–India relations
Both countries established diplomatic ties on 19 January 1959. Since then the relationship between the two countries has been gradually increasing with more frequent diplomatic visits to promote political, commercial cultural and academic exchanges. Colombia is currently the commercial point of entry into Latin America for Indian companies.[160]
Cuba[edit]
Relations between India and Cuba are relatively warm. Both nations are part of the Non-Aligned Movement. Cuba has repeatedly called for a more "democratic" representation of the United Nations Security Council and supports India's candidacy as a permanent member on a reformed Security Council.[161] Fidel Castro said that "The maturity of India…, its unconditional adherence to the principles which lay at the foundation of the Non-Aligned Movement give us the assurances that under the wise leadership of Indira Gandhi (the formerPrime Minister of India), the non-aligned countries will continue advancing in their inalienable role as a bastion for peace, national independence and development…" [162]
India has an embassy in Havana, the capital of Cuba which opened in January 1960. This had particular significance as it symbolised Indian solidarity with the Cuban revolution.[163] India had been one of the first countries in the world to have recognised the new Cuban government after the Cuban Revolution[164]
Cuba has an embassy in New Delhi, the Indian capital.[165]
Jamaica[edit]
Main article: India-Jamaica relations
Relations between India and Jamaica are generally cordial and close. There are many cultural and political connexions inherited from British colonisation, such as membership in the Commonwealth of Nations, parliamentary democracy, the English language and cricket.[166][167]
Both nations are members of the Non-Aligned Movement, the United Nations and the Commonwealth, and Jamaica supports India's candidacy for permanent membership on a reformed UN Security Council.
During the British era, Indian slaves were transported to serve in Jamaica and the West Indies. This has created a considerable population of People of Indian origin in Jamaica. India has a High Commission in Kingston,[166] whilst Jamaica has a consulate in New Delhi [168] and plans to upgrade it to a High Commission soon.
Mexico[edit]
Main article: India–Mexico relations
Mexico is a very important and major economic partner of India. Nobel Prize laureate and ambassador to India Octavio Paz wrote is book In Light of India which is an analysis of Indian history and culture.[169] Both nations are regional powers and members of the G-20.
- India has an embassy in Mexico City.[170]
- Mexico has an embassy in New Delhi.[171]
Paraguay[edit]
See also: India–Paraguay relationsThe bilateral relations between the Republic of India and the Paraguay have been traditionally strong due to strong commercial, cultural and strategic cooperation. India is represented in Paraguay through its embassy in Buenos Aires in Argentina. India also has an Honorary Consul General in Asuncion. Paraguay opened its embassy in India in 2005.[172]
Trinidad & Tobago[edit]
Bilateral relations between the Republic of India and the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago have considerably expanded in recent years with both nations building strategic and commercial ties. Both nations formally established diplomatic relations in 1962.[173]
Both nations were colonised by the British Empire; India supported independence of Trinidad and Tobago from colonial rule and established its diplomatic mission in 1962 - the year that Trinidad and Tobago officially gained independence from British rule. They possess diverse natural and economic resources and are the largest economies in their respective regions. Both are members of the Commonwealth of Nations, the United Nations, G-77 and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).
The Republic of India operates a High Commission in Port of Spain, whilst the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago operates a High Commission in New Delhi.
United States[edit]
Main article: India–United States relations
Historically, relations between India and the United States were lukewarm following Indian independence, as India took a leading position in the Non-Aligned Movement, and pursued even-handed economic and military relations with the Soviet Union, although US provided support to India in 1962 during its war with China. For most of the Cold War, the USA tended to have warmer relations with Pakistan, primarily as a way to contain Soviet-friendly India and to use Pakistan to back the Afghan Mujahideen against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. An Indo-Soviet twenty year friendship treaty, signed in 1971, also positioned India against the USA.
Cold War era[edit]
India played a key role in establishing the Non-Aligned Movement in 1961. Though India pursued close relations with both the US and the USSR, it decided not to join any major power bloc and refrained from joining military alliances. India, however began establishing close relations with the Soviet Union.
After the Sino-Indian War and the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, India made considerable changes to its foreign policy. It developed a close relationship with the Soviet Union and started receiving massive military equipment and financial assistance from the USSR. This had an adverse effect on the Indo-US relationship. The United States saw Pakistan as a counterweight to pro-Soviet India and started giving the former military assistance. This created an atmosphere of suspicion between India and the US. The Indo-US relationship suffered a considerable setback when the Soviets took over Afghanistan when India overtly supported the Soviet Union.
Relations between India and the United States came to an all-time low during the early 1970s. Despite reports of atrocities in East Pakistan, and being told, most notably in theBlood telegram, of genocidal activities being perpetrated by Pakistani forces, US. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and US President Richard Nixon did nothing to discourage then Pakistani President Yahya Khan and the Pakistan Army. Kissinger was particularly concerned about Soviet expansion into South Asia as a result of a treaty of friendship that had recently been signed between India and the Soviet Union, and sought to demonstrate to the People's Republic of China the value of a tacit alliance with the United States.[174] During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, Indian Armed Forces, along with the Mukti Bahini, succeeded in liberating East Pakistan which soon declared independence. Richard Nixon, then USA President, feared that an Indian invasion of West Pakistan would mean total Soviet domination of the region, and that it would seriously undermine the global position of the United States and the regional position of America's new tacit ally, China. In order to demonstrate to China the bona fides of the United States as an ally, and in direct violation of the Congress-imposed sanctions on Pakistan, Nixon sent military supplies to Pakistan, routing them through Jordan and Iran,[175] while also encouraging China to increase its arms supplies to Pakistan.
When Pakistan's defeat in the eastern sector seemed certain, Nixon sent theUSS Enterprise to the Bay of Bengal, a move deemed by the Indians as a nuclear threat. The Enterprise arrived on station on 11 December 1971. On 6 and 13 December, the Soviet Navy dispatched two groups of ships, armed with nuclear missiles, from Vladivostok; they trailed US Task Force 74 into the Indian Ocean from 18 December 1971 until 7 January 1972. The Soviets also sent nuclear submarines to ward off the threat posed by USSEnterprise in the Indian Ocean.[176]
Though American efforts had no effect in turning the tide of the war, the incident involving USS Enterprise is viewed as the trigger for India's subsequent interest in developing nuclear weapons.[177] American policy towards the end of the war was dictated primarily by a need to restrict the escalation of war on the western sector to prevent the 'dismemberment' of West Pakistan.[178] Years after the war, many American writers criticised the White House policies during the war as being badly flawed and ill-serving the interests of the United States.[179] India carried out nuclear tests a few years later resulting in sanctions being imposed by United States, further drifting the two countries apart. In recent years, Kissinger came under fire for comments made during the Indo-Pakistan War in which he described Indians as "bastards."[180] Kissinger has since expressed his regret over the comments.[181]
After the Cold War[edit]
Since the end of the Cold War, India-USA relations have improved dramatically. This has largely been fostered by the fact that the United States and India are both democracies and have a large and growing trade relationship. During the Gulf War, the economy of India went through an extremely difficult phase. The Government of India adopted liberalised economic systems. After the breakup of the Soviet Union, India improved diplomatic relations with the members of the NATO particularly Canada, France and Germany. In 1992, India established formal diplomatic relations with Israel.
Pokhran tests[edit]
In 1998, India tested nuclear weapons which resulted in several U.S., Japanese and European sanctions on India. India's then defence minister, George Fernandes, said that India's nuclear programme was necessary as it provided a deterrence to some potential nuclear threat. Most of the sanctions imposed on India were removed by 2001. India has categorically stated that it will never use weapons first but will defend if attacked.
The economic sanctions imposed by the United States in response to India's nuclear tests in May 1998 appeared, at least initially, to seriously damage Indo-American relations. President Bill Clinton imposed wide-ranging sanctions pursuant to the 1994 Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Act. U.S. sanctions on Indian entities involved in the nuclear industry and opposition to international financial institution loans for non-humanitarian assistance projects in India. The United States encouraged India to sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) immediately and without condition. The United States also called for restraint in missile and nuclear testing and deployment by both India and Pakistan. The non-proliferation dialogue initiated after the 1998 nuclear tests has bridged many of the gaps in understanding between the countries.
Further information: Pokhran-IIPost–11 September[edit]
After the 11 September attacks in 2001, Indian intelligence agencies provided the United States with significant information on Al-Qaedaand related groups' activities in Pakistan and Afghanistan. India's extensive contribution to the War on Terror has helped India's diplomatic relations with several countries. Over the past few years, India has held numerous joint military exercises with United States and European nations that have resulted in a strengthened U.S.-India and EU-India bilateral relationship. India's bilateral trade with Europe and US has more than doubled in the last five years.
However, India has not signed the CTBT, or the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, claiming the discriminatory nature of the treaty that allows the five declared nuclear countries of the world to keep their nuclear arsenal and develop it using computer simulation testing. Prior to its nuclear testing, India had pressed for a comprehensive destruction of nuclear weapons by all countries of the world in a time-bound frame. This was not favoured by the United States and by certain other countries. Presently, India has declared its policy of "no-first use of nuclear weapons" and the maintenance of a "credible nuclear deterrence". The USA, under President George W. Bush has also lifted most of its sanctions on India and has resumed military co-operation. Relations with USA have considerably improved in the recent years, with the two countries taking part in joint naval exercises off the coast of India and joint air exercises both in India as well as in the United States.[182][183][184]
India has been pushing for reforms in the United Nations and in the World Trade Organisation with mixed results. India's candidature for a permanent seat at the UN Security Council is currently backed by several countries including United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan, Brazil, African Union nations, United States and China. In 2005, the United States signed a nuclear cooperation agreement with India even though the latter is not a part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The United States agreed that India's strong nuclear non-proliferation record made it an exception and persuaded other Nuclear Suppliers Group members to sign similar deals with India.
On 2 March 2006 India and the United States signed the Indo-U.S. Nuclear Pact on co-operation in civilian nuclear field. This was signed during the four days state visit of USA President George Bush in India. On its part, India would separate its civilian and military nuclear programmes, and the civilian programmes would be brought under the safeguards of International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA). The United States would sell India the reactor technologies and the nuclear fuel for setting up and upgrading its civilian nuclear programme. The U.S. Congress needs to ratify this pact since U.S. federal law prohibits the trading of nuclear technologies and materials outside the framework of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
Indo-USA strategic partnership[edit]
Indo-USA relations got strategic content in the early 1960s. The rise of the People's Republic of China worried the policymakers in Washington. Chinese assertion in Tibet, its role in the Korean War and other such acts concerned Washington. As the relations between India and China were heated during the late fifties, the Americans found a golden opportunity to take advantage of this situation to promote India as a counterweight to China.[185] But any unidimensional alliance is bound to be short-lived and this alliance was no exception to this general rule. As China ceased to be a headache for the American policymakers by the late sixties, this unidimensional alliance disappeared into thin air.
The end of the Cold War necessitated as well as facilitated the infusion of strategic content to Indo-USA relations–this time multidimensional. In the post Cold War era, the strategic objectives of India and the United States converges on a number of issues and not just one–as well as the case earlier. These issues include, inter alia, containment of terrorism, promotion of democracy, counter proliferation, freedom of navigation in the Indian Ocean, Asian balance of power, etc.[30]
One of the very interesting features of Indo-USA relations of recent times is the changes on the terms of engagement between the two countries on the issue of nuclear proliferation. While earlier, in the USA strategic thinking on nuclear proliferation, India figured mainly because of American concern about latter's nuclear and missile programmes, in the twenty-first century, however, American strategic thinking on the issue of nuclear proliferation has undergone major reorientation. Now, the Americans are increasingly realising the futility of insisting on a rollback of India's nuclear programme. They, rather, want to leverage India's growing power and influence in favour of their broader nonproliferation and counter proliferation objectives.[186]
As promotion of democracy around the world is one of the most important foreign policy objective of the United States, India—as the largest democracy of the world—can hardly be overlooked by the United States. This is the reason, cooperation in promotion of democracy in the world has become one of the most important facets of Indo-USA relations in recent times. India is a founding member of the "Community of Democracies"—a prominent endeavour of the United States on promotion of democracy. However, India rejected the suggestion of the USA about setting up a Centre for Asian Democracy.[187]
Agriculture is another important area of cooperation between India and the USA in present times. Considering the fact that both the nations at present have a vast pool of human resources adept at knowledge economy, it is only natural that the best course such partnership can aim at is harnessing these human resources by concentrating on development and dissemination of agricultural knowledge through research, education and training etc. An initiative to forge such a partnership is the "India-USA Knowledge Initiative on Agriculture" (KIA).[188]
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was the guest of honor at the first state dinner, which took place on 24 November 2009, of the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama. Obama later visited India from 6–9 November 2010, signing numerous trade and defence agreements with India. He addressed the joint session of the Indian parliament in New Delhi, becoming only the second U.S. President to do so, and announced that the United States would lend its support to India's bid for a permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council, signifying the growing strategic dimension of the relationship between the world's two largest democracies.[189]
Europe[edit]
European Union[edit]
Main article: India–European Union relationsIndia was one of the first countries to develop relations with the Union, signing bilateral agreements in 1973, when the United Kingdom joined. The most recent cooperation agreement was signed in 1994 and an action plan was signed in 2005. As of April 2007 the Commission is pursuing a free trade agreement with India.[190]
The Union is India's largest trading partner, accounting for 20% of Indian trade. However, India accounts for only 1.8% of the EU's trade and attracts only 0.3% of European Foreign Direct Investment, although still provides India's largest source. During 2005 EU-India trade grew by 20.3%.[191]
There was controversy in 2006 when the Indian Mittal Steel Company sought to take-over the Luxembourg based steel company, Arcelor. The approach met with opposition from France and Luxembourg but was passed by the Commission who stated that were judging it on competition grounds only.[192]
The European Union (EU) and India agreed on 29 September 2008 at the EU-India summit in Marseille, France's largest commercial port, to expand their cooperation in the fields of nuclear energy and environmental protection and deepen their strategic partnership. French President Nicolas Sarkozy, the EU's rotating president, said at a joint press conference at the summit that "EU welcomes India, as a large country, to engage in developing nuclear energy, adding that this clean energy will be helpful for the world to deal with the global climate change". Sarkozy also said the EU and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan pledged to accelerate talks on a free trade deal and expected to finish the deal by 2009. The Indian prime minister was also cautiously optimistic about cooperation on nuclear energy. "Tomorrow we have a bilateral summit with France. This matter will come up and I hope some good results will emerge out of that meeting", Singh said when asked about the issue. Singh said that he was "very satisfied" with the results of the summit. He added that EU and India have "common values" and the two economies are complementary to each other.
European Commission President José Manuel Barroso, also speaking at Monday's press conference, expounded the joint action plan on adjustments of EU's strategic partnership with India, saying the two sides will strengthen cooperation on world peace and safety, sustainable development, cooperation in science and technology and cultural exchanges.
Reviewing the two sides' efforts in developing the bilateral strategic partnership, the joint action plan reckoned that in politics, dialogue and cooperation have enhanced through regular summits and exchanges of visits and that in economy, mutual investments have increased dramatically in recent years, dialogue in macro economic policies and financial services has established and cooperation in energy, science and technology and environment has been launched. Under the joint action plan, EU and Indian would enhance consultation and dialogue on human rights within the UN framework, strengthen cooperation in world peacekeeping mission, fight against terror and non-proliferation of arms, promote cooperation and exchange in developing civil nuclear energy and strike a free trade deal as soon as possible. France, which relies heavily on nuclear power and is a major exporter of nuclear technology, is expected to sign a deal that would allow it to provide nuclear fuel to India.
Trade between India and the 27-nation EU has more than doubled from 25.6 billion euros ($36.7 billion) in 2000 to 55.6 billion euros last year, with further expansion to be seen. "We have agreed to achieve an annual bilateral trade turnover of 100 billion euros within the next five years", Singh told reporters. A joint statement issued at the end of the summit said the EU and India would work to reach an agreement on climate change by the end of 2009.
Denmark[edit]
Main article: Denmark–India relationsDenmark has an embassy in New Delhi, and India has an embassy in Copenhagen.[193][194]
Tranquebar, a town in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, was a Danish colony in India from 1620 to 1845. It is spelled Trankebaror Tranquebar in Danish, which comes from the native Tamil, Tarangambadi, meaning "place of the singing waves". It was sold, along with the other Danish settlements in mainland India, most notably Serampore (now in West Bengal), to Great Britain in 1845. TheNicobar Islands were also colonised by Denmark, until sold to the British in 1868, who made them part of their colony of British India.
After Independence in 1947, Indian prime minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru's visit to Denmark in 1957 laid the foundation for a friendly relationship between India and Denmark that has endured ever since. The bilateral relations between India and Denmark are cordial and friendly, based on synergies in political, economic, academic and research fields. There have been periodic high level visits between the two countries.[195]
Anders Fogh Rasmussen, former Prime Minister of Denmark, accompanied by a large business delegation, paid a State visit to India from February 4 to 8, 2008. He visited Infosys, Biocon and IIM Bangalore in Bangalore and Agra. He launched an 'India Action Plan', which called for strengthening of the political dialogue, strengthening of cooperation in trade and investments, research in science andtechnology, energy, climate and environment, culture, education, student exchanges and attracting skilled manpower and IT experts to Denmark for short periods. The two countries signed an Agreement for establishment of a Bilateral Joint Commission for Coopration.
In July 2012, Govt of India decided to scale down its diplomatic ties with Denmark after that country's refusal to appeal in their Supreme Court against a decision of its lower court rejecting the extradition of Purulia arms drop case prime accused Kim Davy a.k.a. Niels Holck. Agitated over Denmark's refusal to act on India's repeated requests to appeal in their apex court to facilitate Davy's extradition to India, government issued a circular directing all senior officials not to meet or entertain any Danish diplomat posted in India.[196]
Vatican City & the Holy See[edit]
Main article: Holy See–India relationsFormal bilateral relations between India and the Vatican have existed since 12 June 1948. An Apostolic Delegation existed in India from 1881. The Holy See has a nunciature in New Delhi whilst India has accredited its embassy in Bern, Switzerland to the Holy See as well. India's Ambassador in Bern has traditionally been accredited to the Holy See. The present Apostolic Nuncio to India is ArchbishopSalvatore Pennacchio while India's ambassador to the Holy See is Chitra Narayanan.
The connexions between the Catholic church and India can be traced back to the apostle St. Thomas, who, according to tradition, came to India in 52 CE In the 9th century, the patriarch of the Nestorians in Persia sent bishops to India. There is a record of an Indian bishop visiting Rome in the early part of the 12th century.
The diplomatic mission was established as the Apostolic Delegation to the East Indies in 1881, and included Ceylon, and was extended to Malaca in 1889, and then to Burma in 1920, and eventually included Goa in 1923. It was raised to an Internunciature by Pope Pius XII in 12 June 1948 and to a full Apostolic Nunciature by Pope Paul VI on 22 August 1967.
There have been three Papal visits to India. The first Pope to visit India was Pope Paul VI, who visited Mumbai in 1964 to attend theInternational Eucharistic Congress. Pope John Paul II visited India in February 1986 and November 1999. Several Indian dignitaries have, from time to time, called on the Pope in the Vatican. These include Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1981 and Prime Minister I.K. Gujralin September 1987. Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Prime Minister, called on the Pope in June 2000 during his official visit to Italy. Vice-PresidentBhairon Singh Shekhawat represented the country at the funeral of Pope John Paul II.
United Kingdom[edit]
Main article: India–United Kingdom relations
India has a high commission in London and two consulates-general in Birmingham and Edinburgh.[197] The United Kingdom has a high commission in New Delhi and five deputy high commissions in Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Kolkata.[198] Since 1947, India's relations with the United Kingdom have been through bilateral, as well as through the Commonwealth of Nations framework. Although the Sterling Area no longer exists and the Commonwealth is much more an informal forum, India and the UK still have many enduring links. This is in part due to the significant number of people of Indian origin living in the UK. The large South Asian population in the UK results in steady travel and communication between the two countries. The British Raj allowed for both cultures to imbibe tremendously from the other. The English language and cricket are perhaps the two most evident British exports, whilst in the UK food from the Indian subcontinent are very popular.[199] The United Kingdom's favourite food is often reported to be Indian cuisine, although no official study reports this.[199]
Economically the relationship between Britain and India is also strong. India is the second largest investor in Britain after the US.[200][201] Britain is also one of the largest investors in India.[202]
In 2008 Britain gave India a £825 million aid package to help India develop its health and education systems.[203][204]
France[edit]
Main article: France–India relations
France and India established diplomatic relationships soon after India's independence from the United Kingdom in 1947. India's strong diplomatic ties with France facilitated the peaceful handover of Pondicherry to India on 1 November 1954 without any opposition from France.
France, Russia and Israel were the only countries that did not condemn India's decision to go nuclear in 1998.[205] In 2003, France became the largest supplier of nuclear fuel and technology to India and remains a large military and economic trade partner. India's candidacy for permanent membership in the UN Security Council has found very strong support from former French President Nicolas Sarkozy. The Indian Government's decisions to purchase French Scorpène class submarines worth $3 billion USD and 43 Airbus aircraft for Air India worth $2.5 billion USD have further cemented the strategic, military and economic co-operation between India and France.
France's decision to ban schoolchildren from wearing of head-dresses and veils had the unintended consequence of affecting Sikh children who have been refused entry in public schools. The Indian Government, citing historic traditions of the Sikh community, has requested French authorities to review the situation so as to not to exclude Sikh children from education.
Nicolas Sarkozy visited India in January 2008 and was the Chief Guest of the Republic Dayparade in New Delhi. France was the first country to sign a nuclear energy co-operation agreement with India; this was done during Prime Minister Singh's visit, following the waiver by the Nuclear Suppliers Group. During theBastille Day celebrations on 14 July 2009, a detachment of 400 Indian troops marched alongside the French troops and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was the guest of honour.[206]
Italy[edit]
Relations between India and Italy have historically been strong and cordial. Italy and India are also close economic partners and is home to a large population of Indian immigrants. Sonia Gandhi, the chief of India's leading political party, the Indian National Congress, was born in Italy and acquired Indian citizenship through marriage to former Indian PM Rajiv Gandhi.
There have, however, been occasional diplomatic flare-ups and there are ongoing issues between the two countries. The difficulty in obtaining a visas of any kind (tourist, business, employment and others) which when issued are only for very short term and after a lot of hurdles for both Indian and Italian nationals has reduced noticeably the possibility of tourism and business development between the two countries. Indian passengers of Sikh origin, have been singled out for additional screening because of their traditional turban. Italian security staff at airports have insisted that Sikhs remove the head-wear instead of following special security-check provisions which have been implemented in most western countries (especially USA, Canada and UK) with regard to Sikh air-travel passengers.
India maintains an Embassy in Rome, and a Consulate-General in Milan. Italy has an embassy in New Delhi, and Consulate-Generals in Mumbai and Calcutta.
There are around 150,000 people of Indian Origins living in Italy. Around 1,000 Italian citizens reside in India, mostly working on behalf of Italian industrial groups.
Two Italian naval guards currently face trial in India in connection with the killing of two Indian fishermen within the Indian Contiguous Zone off the Kerala coast on 15 February 2012. The Enrica Lexie incident, where Italian Marines of the San Marco Regiment are accused of shooting dead two Indian fishermen, sparked a major diplomatic row between India and Italy. In March 2013, the dispute evolved into a stand-off when Italy reneged on a sovereign undertaking given to the Indian Supreme Court regarding a conditional release accorded to the two Italian marines. Indian Supreme Court retaliated by barring the Italian Ambassador from leaving India. A major diplomatic crisis was averted when Italy backed down and complied with it's undertaking to the Indian Supreme Court by returning the two Italian marines to India.
Traditionally good India-Italy relations have been severely affected in the wake of the Enrica Lexie incident and the Choppergate bribery scandal regarding the sale of AgustaWestland AW101 VVIP helicopters by Italian conglomerate Finmeccanica.
Germany[edit]
Main article: Germany–India relations
During the Cold War India maintained diplomatic relations with West Germany and East Germany. Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the reunification of Germany, relations have further improved. The German ambassador to India, Bernd Mutzelburg, once said that India and Germany, are not just 'natural partners', but important countries in a globalised world. Germany is India's largest trade partner in Europe. German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited India recently, as did the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visit Germany. Both countries have been working towards gaining permanent seats in the United Nations Security Council. As both countries are strong liberal democracies, they have similar objectives. UN reforms, fighting terrorism and climate change, and promotion of science, education, technology, and human rights, are some areas of shared interests, and collaboration between these two countries. Culturally too, Indian and German writers and philosophers, have influenced each other.[207] Recently, Germany has invested in developing education and skills amongst rural Indians. Also of note, during World War II an Indian division known as the Tiger Legion was attached to the German Wehrmacht.
Greece[edit]
Main article: Greece–India relations
The first contact between both civilisations dates back from Alexander the Great's invasion of India and eventual retreat. Alexander's seemingly un-stoppable eastward expansion was halted at the Kingdoms of North-Western of India. 3000 BC and earlier, the Mahabharata talks of Indian warrior Kings' conquest of Greece and the cultural exchange resulting therefrom.[citation needed]
In modern time, diplomatic relations between Greece and India were established in May 1950. The new Greek Embassy building in New Delhi was inaugurated on 6 February 2001.[citation needed]
Economically, India is one of Greece's largest debt creditors with Greece owing India over €60 billion.[citation needed]
Norway[edit]
In 2012, Trond Giske met with Minister of Finance Pranab Mukherjee, to save[208] Telenor's investments to put forth Norway's "strong wish" that there must not be a waiting period between the confiscation of telecom licences and the re-sale of those.[209] The leader ofTelenor attended the meeting.
Spain[edit]
Diplomatic ties with Spain started in 1956.[210] The first Spanish embassy was established in Delhi in 1958. India and Spain have had cordial relationship with each other especially after the establishment of democracy in Spain in 1978. Spain has been a main tourist spot for Indians over the years. Many presidents including Prathibha Patil visited Spain. The royal family of Spain have always liked the humble nature of the Indian government and they have thus paid several visits to India. There was no direct flight from India to Spain but it all changed in 1986 when Iberain travels started to fly directly from Mumbai to Madrid. However it was stopped in 22 months. In 2006 this issue of direct flight was reconsidered so as to improve the ties between India and Spain. "Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara" was shot completely in Spain in 2011. The tourism ministry of Spain are using this movie to promote tourism to Spain in India.
Turkey[edit]
Main article: India–Turkey relations
Due to controversial issues such as Turkey's close relationship with Pakistan, relations between the two countries have often been blistered at certain times, but better at others. India and Turkey's relationship alters from unsureness to collaboration when the two nations work together to combat terrorism in Central and South Asia, and the Middle East. India and Turkey are also connected by history, seeing as they have known each other since the days of the Ottoman Empire, and seeing as India was one of the countries to send aid to Turkey following its war of independence. The Indian real estate firm GMR, has invested in and is working towards the modernisation of Istanbul's Sabiha Gökçen International Airport.
Austria[edit]
Main article: Austria–India relationsAustria–India relations refers to the bilateral ties between Austria and India. Indo-Austrian relations were established in May 1949 by the first Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru and the Chancellor of Austria Leopold Figl.[211] Historically, Indo-Austrian ties have been particularly strong and India intervened in June 1953 in Austria's favour whilst negotiations were going on with Soviet Union about the Austrian State Treaty.[212] There is a fully functioning Indian embassy in Vienna, Austria's capital, which is concurrently accredited to the United Nations offices in the city.[213] Austria is represented in India by its embassy and Trade commission in New Delhi, India's capital, as well as Honorary Consulates in Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Goa.[214]
Other European countries[edit]
Country Formal relations began Notes 
Armenia1992-08-31 See Armenia–India relations The first contacts between both civilisations date back from 2,500 years ago, during the 5th century BC. In modern times, India recognised Armenia on 26 December 1991.
BelarusSee Foreign relations of Belarus 
Bulgaria1954 See Bulgaria–India relations 
CroatiaSee Foreign relations of Croatia 
CyprusSee Foreign relations of Cyprus 
Estonia1991-09-09 See Estonia–India relations India's first recognition of Estonia came on 22 September 1921 when the former had just acquired membership in the League of Nations. India re-recognised Estonia on 9 September 1991 and diplomatic relations were established on 2 December of the same year in Helsinki. Neither country has a resident ambassador. Estonia is represented in India by two honorary consulates (inMumbai and New Delhi). India is represented in Estonia through its embassy in Helsinki (Finland) and through an honorary consulate in Tallinn.
FinlandSee Foreign relations of Finland 
GeorgiaSee Foreign relations of Georgia 
IcelandSee Iceland–India relations Iceland and India established diplomatic relations in 1972. The Embassy of Iceland in London was accredited to India and the Embassy of India in Oslo, Norway, was accredited to Iceland. However, it was only after 2003 that the two countries began close diplomatic and economic relationships.[217] In 2003, President of Iceland Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson visited India on diplomatic mission. This was the first visit by an Icelandic President to India. During the visit, Iceland pledged support to New Delhi's candidature for a permanent seat in the United Nation Security Councilthus becoming the first Nordic country to do so. This was followed by an official visit of President of India A. P. J. Abdul Kalam to Iceland in May 2005.[218] Following this a new embassy of Iceland was opened in New Delhi on 26 February 2006.[217] Soon, an Indian Navy team visited Iceland on friendly mission.[219] Gunnar Pálsson is the ambassador of Iceland to India. The Embassy's area of accreditation, apart from India includes Bangladesh, Indonesia, the Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius and Nepal.[220] India appointedS. Swaminathan as the first resident ambassador to Iceland in March 2008.[221]
IrelandSee India–Ireland relations Indo-Irish relations picked up steam during the freedom struggles of the respective countries against a common imperial empire in the United Kingdom. Political relations between the two states have largely been based on socio-cultural ties, although political and economic ties have also helped build relations. Indo-Irish relations were greatly strengthened by such luminaries asPandit Nehru, Éamon de Valera, Rabindranath Tagore, W. B. Yeats, James Joyce, and, above all,Annie Besant. Politically, relations have not been cold or warm. Mutual benefit has led to economic ties that are fruitful for both states.[citation needed] Visits by government leaders have kept relations cordial at regular intervals.
MaltaSee India–Malta relations Malta opened a High Commission in New Delhi in 2007. Malta also has an honorary consulate in Mumbai. India is represented in Malta through its embassy in Tripoli, Libya and an honorary consulate in Valletta.
PolandSee India–Poland relations Historically, relations have generally been close and friendly, characterised by understanding and cooperation on international front.[222]
Romania- India has an embassy in Bucharest.[223]
- Romania has an embassy in New Delhi and an honorary consulate in Kolkata.[224]
- See also Hinduism in Romania
RussiaSee India–Russia relations During the Cold War, India and the Soviet Union enjoyed a strong strategic, military, economic and diplomatic relationship. After the collapse of the USSR, India improved its relations with the West but it continued its close relations with Russia. India is the second-largest market for the Russian arms industry. In 2004, more than 70% of the Indian Military's hardware came from Russia, making Russia the chief supplier of arms.[225] India has an embassy in Moscow and two Consulates-General (in Saint Petersburg and Vladivostok). Russia has an embassy in New Delhi and three Consulates-General (in Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai). Since 2000 and the visit of Vladimir Putin in India, there has been an Indo-Russian Strategic Partnership.
SerbiaSee India–Serbia relations - India has an embassy in Belgrade.[226]
- Serbia has an embassy in New Delhi and an honorary consulate in Chennai.[227]
- See also Hinduism in Serbia
- Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs about relations with India
Slovenia- India has an embassy in Ljubljana.[228]
- Slovenia has an embassy in New Delhi.
- See also Hinduism in Slovenia
Spain1956 
Switzerland1948 - Switzerland has an embassy in New Delhi and a consulate in Bangalore and Mumbai.[229]
- India has an embassy in Bern and consulates in Geneva and Zurich.[230]
India is one of Switzerland's most important partners in Asia. Bilateral and political contacts are constantly developing, and trade and scientific cooperation between the two countries are flourishing.[231] Switzerland was the first country in the World to sign a Friendship treaty with India in 1947.[232]
UkraineSee India–Ukraine relations Diplomatic relations between India and Ukraine were established in January 1992. The Indian Embassy in Kiev was opened in May 1992 and Ukraine opened its mission in New Delhi in February 1993. The Consulate General of India in Odessa functioned from 1962 till its closure in March 1999.
West Asia[edit]
Arab states of the Persian Gulf[edit]
India and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf enjoy strong cultural and economic ties. This is reflected in the fact that more than 50% of the oil consumed by India comes from the Persian Gulf countries[233] and Indian nationals form the largest expatriate community in the Arabian peninsula.[234] The annual remittance by Indian expatriates in the region amounted to US$20 billion in 2007.[citation needed] India is one of the largest trading partners of the CCASG with non-oil trade between India and Dubai alone amounting to US$19 billion in 2007.[235] The Persian Gulf countries have also played an important role in addressing India's energy security concerns, with Saudi Arabia and Kuwait regularly increasing their oil supply to India to meet the country's rising energy demand. In 2005, Kuwait increased its oil exports to India by 10% increasing the net oil trade between the two to US$4.5 billion.[236] In 2008, Qatar decided to invest US$5 billion in India's energy sector.[237]
India has maritime security arrangement in place with Oman and Qatar.[238] In 2008, a landmark defence pact was signed, under which India committed its military assets to protect "Qatar from external threats".[239] There has been progress in a proposed deep-sea gas pipeline from Qatar, via Oman, to India.[240]
Bahrain[edit]
Main article: Bahrain–India relations
India is a close ally of Bahrain, the Kingdom along with its GCC partners are (according to Indian officials) among the most prominent backers of India's bid for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council,[241] and Bahraini officials have urged India to play a greater role in international affairs. For instance, over concerns about Iran's nuclear programme Bahrain's Crown Prince appealed to India to play an active role in resolving the crisis.[242]
Ties between India and Bahrain go back generations, with many of Bahrain's most prominent figures having close connexions: poet and constitutionalist Ebrahim Al-Arrayedh grew up in Bombay, while 17th century Bahraini theologians Sheikh Salih Al-Karzakani and Sheikh Ja`far bin Kamal al-Din were influential figures in the Kingdom of Golkonda[243] and the development of Shia thought in the sub-continent.
Bahraini politicians have sought to enhance these long standing ties, with Parliamentary Speaker Khalifa Al Dhahrani in 2007 leading a delegation of parliamentarians and business leaders to meet Indian President Pratibha Patil, opposition leader L K Advani, and take part in training and media interviews.[244] Politically, it is easier for Bahrain's politicians to seek training and advice from India than it is from the United States or other western alternative.
In December 2007, the Bahrain India Society was launched in Manama to promote ties between the two countries. Headed by the former Minister of Labour Abdulnabi Al Shoala, the Society seeks to take advantage of the development in civil society to actively work to strengthen ties between the two countries, not only business links, but according to the body's opening statement in politics, social affairs, science and culture. India's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs E Ahmed and his Bahraini counterpart Dr Nazar Al Baharnaattended the launch.[245]
Egypt[edit]
Main article: Egypt–India relations
Modern Egypt-India relations go back to the contacts between Saad Zaghloul and Mohandas Gandhi on the common goals of their respective movements of independence.[246] In 1955, Egypt under Gamal Abdul Nasser and India under Jawaharlal Nehru became the founders of the Non-Aligned Movement. During the 1956 War, Nehru stood supporting Egypt to the point of threatening to withdraw his country from the Commonwealth of Nations. In 1967, following the Arab-Israeli war, India supported Egypt and the Arabs. In 1977, New Delhi described the visit of President Anwar al-Sadat to Jerusalem as a "brave" move and considered the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel a primary step on the path of a just settlement of the Middle East problem. Major Egyptian exports to India include raw cotton, raw and manufactured fertilisers, oil and oil products, organic and non-organic chemicals, leather and iron products. Major imports into Egypt from India are cotton yarn, sesame, coffee, herbs, tobacco, lentils, pharmaceutical products and transport equipment. The Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum is also currently negotiating the establishment of a natural gas-operated fertiliser plant with another Indian company. In 2004 the Gas Authority of India Limited, bought 15% of Egypt Nat Gas distribution and marketing company. In 2008 Egyptian investment in India was worth some 750 million dollars, according to the Egyptian ambassador.[247] AfterArab Spring of 2011, with ousting of Hosni Mubarak, Egypt has asked for help of India in conducting nationwide elections
Iran[edit]
Main article: India–Iran relations
After the Iranian Revolution of 1979, Iran withdrew from CENTO and dissociated itself from U.S.-friendly countries, including Pakistan, which automatically meant improved relationship with the Republic of India.
Currently, the two countries have friendly relations in many areas. There are significant trade ties, particularly in crude oil imports into India and diesel exports to Iran. Iran frequently objected to Pakistan's attempts to draft anti-India resolutions at international organisations such as the OIC. India welcomed Iran's inclusion as an observer state in the SAARC regional organisation. Lucknow continues to be a major centre of Shiite culture and Persian study in the subcontinent.
In the 1990s, India and Iran both supported the Northern Alliance in Afghanistan against the Taliban regime. They continue to collaborate in supporting the broad-based anti-Taliban government led by Hamid Karzai and backed by the United States.
However, one complex issue in Indo-Iran relations is the issue of Iran's nuclear programme. In this intricate issue, India tries to make a delicate balance. According to Rejaul Laskar, an Indian expert on international relations, "India's position on Iran's nuclear programme has been consistent, principled and balanced, and makes an endeavour to reconcile Iran's quest for energy security with the international community's concerns on proliferation. So, while India acknowledges and supports Iran's ambitions to achieve energy security and in particular, its quest for peaceful use of nuclear energy, it is also India's principled position that Iran must meet all its obligations under the international law, particularly its obligations under the nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and other such treaties to which it is a signatory"[248]
Following an attack on an Israeli diplomat in India in February 2012, the Delhi Police contended that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps had some involvement in the attack. This was subsequently confirmed in July 2012, after a report by the Delhi Police found evidence that members of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps had been involved in the February 13 bomb attack in the capital.[249]
Iraq[edit]
Main article: India–Iraq relations
Iraq was one of the few countries in the Middle East with which India established diplomatic relations at the embassy level immediately after its independence in 1947.[250] Both nations signed the "Treaty of Perpetual Peace and Friendship" in 1952 and an agreement of cooperation on cultural affairs in 1954.[250] India was amongst the first to recognise the Baath Party-led government, and Iraq remained neutral during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. However, Iraq sided alongside other Persian Gulf states in supporting Pakistan against India during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, which saw the creation of Bangladesh.[250] The eight-year long Iran–Iraq War caused a steep decline in trade and commerce between the two nations.[250]
During the 1991 Persian Gulf War, India remained neutral but permitted refueling for US aircraft.[250] It opposed UN sanctions on Iraq, but the period of war and Iraq's isolation further diminished India's commercial and diplomatic ties.[250] From 1999 onwards, Iraq and India began to work towards a stronger relationship. Iraq had supported India's right to conduct nuclear tests following its tests of five nuclear weapons on 11 and 13 May 1998.[250] In 2000, the then-Vice President of Iraq Taha Yassin Ramadan visited India, and on 6 August 2002 President Saddam Hussein conveyed Iraq's "unwavering support" to India over the Kashmir dispute with Pakistan.[250][251]India and Iraq established joint ministerial committees and trade delegations to promote extensive bilateral cooperation.[141][252]Although initially disrupted during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, diplomatic and commercial ties between India and the new democratic government of Iraq have since been normalised.[252]
Israel[edit]
Main article: India–Israel relations
The creation of Israel at the end of World War II was a complex issue. India, along with Iran and Yugoslavia had recommended a single state with Arab and Jewish majority provinces with an aim to prevent partition of historic Palestine and prevent any conflict that might follow based on its own experience during partition.[253] However, the final UN resolution decided to partition historic Palestine into Arab and Jewish states based on religious and ethnic majority which India opposed in the final vote as it did not agree with concept of partition on the basis of religion.[254]
However, due to the security threat from a U.S.-backed Pakistan and its nuclear programme in the 1980s, Israel and India started a clandestine relationship that involved cooperation between their respective intelligence agencies.[255] Israel shared India's concerns about the growing danger posed by Pakistan and nuclear proliferation to Iran and other Arab states.[256] After the end of the Cold War, formal relations with Israel started improving significantly.[60][257]
Since the establishment of full diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992, India has improved its relation with the Jewish State. India is regarded as Israel's strongest ally in Asia, and Israel is India's second largest arms supplier. However, after India achieved itsindependence in 1947, the country has moved to support Palestinian self-determination; India recognised Palestine's statehood following Palestine's declaration on the 18 November 1988[258] and Indo-Palestinian relations were first established in 1974.[259] This hasn't severely impacted India's relations with Israel, though.
India has entertained Israeli Prime Minister in a visit in 2003,[260] and Israel has entertained Indian dignitaries such as Finance MinisterJaswant Singh in diplomatic visits. India and Israel collaborate in scientific and technological endeavors. Israel's Minister for Science and Technology has expressed interest in collaborating with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) towards utilising satellites for better management of land and other resources. Israel has also expressed interest in participating in ISRO's Chandrayaan Mission involving an unmanned mission to the moon.[261] On 21 January 2008 India successfully launched an Israeli spy satellite into orbit from Sriharikota space station in southern India.[262]
Israel and India share intelligence on terrorist groups. They have developed close defence and security ties since establishing diplomatic relations in 1992. Israel is India's second-biggest arms supplier, after Russia. India has bought more than $5 billion worth of Israeli equipment since 2002. In addition, Israel is training Indian military units and discussing an arrangement to give Indian commandos instruction in counter-terrorist tactics and urban warfare.[263] In December 2008, Israel and India signed a memorandum to set up an Indo-Israel Legal Colloquium to facilitate discussions and exchange programmes between judges and jurists of the two countries.[264]
Following the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 2006, India came out, surprisingly, saying Israeli use of force was "disproportionate and excessive."[265]
Lebanon[edit]
India and Lebanon enjoy cordial and friendly relations based on many complementarities such as political system based on parliamentary democracy, non-alignment, human rights, commitment to a just world order, regional and global peace, liberal market economy and a vibrant entrepreneurial spirit. India has a peacekeeping force as part of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). One infantry battalion is deployed in Lebanon and about 900 personnel are stationed in the Eastern part of South Lebanon.[266] The force also provided non-patrol aid to citizens.[267] India and Lebanon have very good relations since the 1950s.
Oman[edit]
Main article: India-Oman relations
India–Oman relations are foreign relations between India and the Sultanate of Oman. India has an embassy in Muscat, Oman. The Indian consulate was opened in Muscat in February 1955 and five years later it was upgraded to a Consulate General and later developed into a full fledged Embassy in 1971. The first Ambassador of India arrived in Muscat in 1973. Oman established its Embassy in New Delhi in 1972 and a Consulate General in Mumbai in 1976.
Palestine[edit]
Main article: India-Palestine relationsAfter India achieved its independence in 1947, the country has moved to support Palestinian self-determination following the partition ofBritish India. In the light of a religious partition between India and Pakistan, the impetus to boost ties with Muslim states around the world was a further tie to India's support for the Palestinian cause. Though it started to waver in the late 1980s and 1990s as the recognition of Israel led to diplomatic exchanges, the ultimate support for the Palestinian cause was still an underlying concern. Beyond the recognition for Palestinian self-determination ties have been largely dependent upon socio-cultural bonds, while economic relations were neither cold nor warm.
India recognised Palestine's statehood following its own declaration on 18 November 1988;[258] although relations were first established in 1974.[259]
PNA President Abbas paid a State visit to India in September 2012, during which India pledged $10 million as aid. Indian officials said it was the third such donation, adding that New Delhi was committed to helping other development projects. India also pledged support to Palestine's bid for full and equal membership of the UN.
Saudi Arabia[edit]
Main article: India–Saudi Arabia relations
Bilateral relations between India and the Saudi Arabia have strengthened considerably owing to cooperation in regional affairs and trade. Saudi Arabia is the one of largest suppliers of oil to India, who is one of the top seven trading partners and the 5th biggest investor in Saudi Arabia.[268]
Trade and cultural links between ancient India and Arabia date back to third millennium BCE.[269] By 1000 CE, the trade relations between southern India and Arabia flourished and became the backbone of the Arabian economy.[270] Arab traders held a monopoly over the spice trade between India and Europe until the rise of European imperialist empires.[271] India was one of the first nations to establish ties with the Third Saudi State. During the 1930s, India heavily funded Nejd through financial subsidies.[272]
India's strategic relations with Saudi Arabia have been affected by the latter's close ties with Pakistan.[273] Saudi Arabia supported Pakistan's stance on the Kashmir conflict and during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 at the expense of its relations with India.[274] TheSoviet Union's close relations with India also served as a source of consternation.[273][274] During the Persian Gulf War (1990–91), India officially maintained neutrality. Saudi Arabia's close military and strategic ties with Pakistan have also been a source of continuing strain.[273][274]
Since the 1990s, both nations have taken steps to improve ties. Saudi Arabia has supported granting observer status to India in theOrganisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and has expanded its cooperation with India to fight terrorism.[131] In January 2006, KingAbdullah of Saudi Arabia made a special visit to India, becoming the first Saudi monarch in 51 years to do so.[273] The Saudi king and the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh signed an agreement forging a strategic energy partnership that was termed the "Delhi Declaration".[149] The pact provides for a "reliable, stable and increased volume of crude oil supplies to India through long-term contracts."[275] Both nations also agreed on joint ventures and the development of oil and natural gas in public and private sectors.[275]An Indo-Saudi joint declaration in the Indian capital New Delhi described the king's visit as "heralding a new era in India-Saudi Arabia relations."[131]
Russia and Central Asia[edit]
The dissolution of the Soviet Union and the emergence of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) had major repercussions for Indian foreign policy. Substantial trade with the former Soviet Union plummeted after the Soviet collapse and has yet to recover. Longstanding military supply relationships were similarly disrupted due to questions over financing, although Russia continues to be India's largest supplier of military systems and spare parts.
The relationship with USSR was tested (and proven) during the 1971 war with Pakistan, which led to the subsequent liberation of Bangladesh. Soon after the victory of the Indian Armed Forces, one of the foreign delegates to visit India was Admiral S.G. Gorshkov, Chief of the Soviet Navy. During his visit to Mumbai (Bombay) he came on board INS Vikrant. During a conversation with Vice Admiral Swaraj Prakash, Gorshkov asked the Vice Admiral, "Were you worried about a battle against the American carrier?" He answered himself: "Well, you had no reason to be worried, as I had a Soviet nuclear submarine trailing the American task force all the way into the Indian Ocean."[276]
Russian Federation[edit]
Main articles: Indo-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation and India–Russia relationsIndia's ties with the Russian Federation are time-tested and based on continuity, trust and mutual understanding. There is national consensus in both the countries on the need to preserve and strengthen India-Russia relations and further consolidate the strategic partnership between the two countries. A Declaration on Strategic Partnership was signed between present Russian President Vladimir Putin and former Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in October 2000.
Russia and India have decided not to renew the 1971 Indo-Soviet Peace and Friendship Treaty and have sought to follow what both describe as a more pragmatic, less ideological relationship. Russian President Yeltsin's visit to India in January 1993 helped cement this new relationship. Ties have grown stronger with President Vladimir Putin's 2004 visit. The pace of high-level visits has since increased, as has discussion of major defence purchases. Russia, is working for the development of the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant, that will be capable of producing 1000 MW of electricity. Gazprom, is working for the development of oil and natural gas, in the Bay of Bengal. India and Russia, have collaborated extensively, on space technology. Other areas of collaboration include software, ayurveda, etc. India and Russia, have set a determination in increasing trade to $10 billion. Cooperation between clothing manufacturers of the two countries continues to strengthen. India and Russia signed an agreement on joint efforts to increase investment and trade volumes in the textile industry in both countries. In signing the document included representatives of the Russian Union of Entrepreneurs of Textile and Light Industry Council and apparel exports of India (AEPC). A cooperation agreement provides, inter alia, exchange of technology and know-how in textile production. For this purpose, a special Commission on Affairs textile (Textile Communication Committee). Counter-terrorism techniques are also in place between Russia and India. In 2007 President Vladimir Putin was guest of honour at Republic Day celebration on 26 January 2007. 2008, has been declared by both countries as the Russia-India Friendship Year. Bollywood films are quite popular in Russia. The Indian public sector oil company ONGC bought Imperial Energy in 2008. In December 2008, during President Medvedev's visit, to New Delhi, India and Russia, signed a nuclear energy co-operation agreement. In March, 2010, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin signed an additional 19 pacts with India which included civilian nuclear energy, space and military co-operation and the final sale of Admiral Gorshkov (Aircraft Carrier) along with MiG-29K fighter jets.
Kazakhstan[edit]
Main article: India–Kazakhstan relations
India is working towards developing strong relations with this resource rich Central Asian country. The Indian oil company, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, has got oil exploration and petroleum development grants in Kazakhstan. The two countries are collaborating in petrochemicals, information technology, and space technology. Kazakhstan has offered India five blocks for oil and gas exploration. India and Kazakhstan, are to set up joint projects in construction, minerals and metallurgy. India also signed four other pacts, including an extradition treaty, in the presence of President Prathibha Patil and her Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev. Kazakhastan will provide uranium and related products under the MoU between Nuclear Power Corp. of India and KazatomProm. These MoU also opens possibilities of joint exploration of uranium in Kazakhstan, which has the worlds' second largest reserves, and India building atomic power plants in the Central Asian country.
Mongolia[edit]
Main article: India–Mongolia relations
The relations between India and Mongolia are still at a nascent stage and Indo-Mongolian cooperation is limited to diplomatic visits, provision of soft loans and financial aid and the collaborations in the IT sector. India established diplomatic relations in December 1955. India was the first country outside the Soviet block to establish diplomatic relations with Mongolia. Since then, there have been treaties of mutual friendship and cooperation between the two countries in 1973, 1994, 2001 and 2004.
Tajikistan[edit]
Main article: India–Tajikistan relations
Diplomatic relations were established India and Tajikistan following Tajikistan's independence from the 1991 dissolution of the Soviet Union, which had been friendly with India. Tajikistan occupies a strategically important position in Central Asia, bordering Afghanistan, the People's Republic of China and separated by a small strip of Afghan territory from Pakistan. India's role in fighting the Taliban and Al-Qaeda and its strategic rivalry with both China and Pakistan have made its ties with Tajikistan important to its strategic and security policies. Despite their common efforts, bilateral trade has been comparatively low, valued at USD 12.09 million in 2005; India's exports to Tajikistan were valued at USD 6.2 million and its imports at USD 5.89 million. India's military presence and activities have been significant, beginning with India's extensive support to the anti-Taliban Afghan Northern Alliance (ANA). India began renovating theFarkhor Air Base and stationed aircraft of the Indian Air Force there. The Farkhor Air Base became fully operational in 2006, and 12 MiG-29 bombers and trainer aircraft are planned to be stationed there.
Uzbekistan[edit]
India has an embassy in Tashkent. Uzbekistan has an embassy in New Delhi. Uzbekistan has had a great impact on Indian culture mostly due to the Mughal Empire which was founded by Babur of Ferghana (in present-day Uzbekistan) who created his empire southward first in Afghanistan and then in India.
Africa[edit]
As of year 2011, India's total trade with Africa is over US$46 billion and total investment is over US$11 billion with US$5.7 billion line of credit for executing various projects in Africa.[277]
India has had good relationships with most sub-Saharan African nations for most of its history. In the Prime Minister's visit to Mauritius in 1997, the two countries secured a deal to a new Credit Agreement of INR 10.50 crore (US$3 million) to finance import by Mauritius of capital goods, consultancy services and consumer durable from India. The government of India secured a rice and medicine agreement with the people of Seychelles. India continued to build upon its historically close relations with Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Visits from political ministers from Ethiopia provided opportunities for strengthening bilateral cooperation between the two countries in the fields of education and technical training, water resources management and development of small industries. This has allowed India to gain benefits from nations that are generally forgotten by other Western Nations. The South African President, Thabo Mbeki has called for a strategic relationship between India and South Africa to avoid imposition by Western Nations. India continued to build upon its close and friendly relations with Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia,Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The Minister of Foreign Affairs arranged for the sending of Special Envoys to each of these countries during 1996–97 as a reaffirmation of India's assurance to strengthening cooperation with these countries in a spirit of South-South partnership. These relations have created a position of strength with African nations that other nations may not possess.[278]
Ethiopia[edit]
Main article: India-Ethiopia relations
India and Westindies have warm bilateral ties based on mutual cooperation and support. India has been a partner in Ethiopia's developmental efforts, training Ethiopian personnel under its ITEC programmer, providing it with several lines of credit and launching thePan-African e-Network Project there in 2007. The Second India-Africa Forum Summit was held in Addis Ababa in 2011. India is also Ethiopia's second largest source of Foreign Direct Investments.
Ghana[edit]
Relations between Ghana and India are generally close and cordial.
Economic Co-operation[edit]
Trade between India and Ghana amounted to US$818 million in 2010-11 and is expected to be worth US$1 billion by 2013.[279] Ghana imports automobiles and buses from India and companies like Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland have a significant presence in the country.[280][281] Ghanaian exports to India consist of gold, cocoa and timber while Indian exports to Ghana comprise pharmaceuticals, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment, plastics, steel and cement.[282]
The Government of India has extended $228 million in lines of credit to Ghana which has been used for projects in sectors like agro-processing, fish processing, waste management, rural electrification and the expansion of Ghana's railways.[283] India has also offered to set up an India-Africa Institute of Information Technology (IAIIT) and a Food Processing Business Incubation Centre in Ghana under the India-Africa Forum Summit.[282]
India is among the largest foreign investors in Ghana's economy. At the end of 2011, Indian investments in Ghana amounted to $550 million covering some 548 projects.[283] Indian investments are primarily in the agriculture and manufacturing sectors of Ghana while Ghanaian companies manufacture drugs in collaboration with Indian companies. The IT sector in Ghana too has a significant Indian presence in it. India and Ghana also have a Bilateral Investment Protection Agreement between them.[284] India's Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers is in the process of setting up a fertiliser plant in Ghana at Nyankrom in the Shama District of the Western Region of Ghana. The project entails an investment of US$1.3 billion and the plant would have an annual production capacity of 1.1 million tonnes, the bulk of which would be exported to India.[285][286] There are also plans to develop a sugar processing plant entailing an investment of US$36 million.[287] Bank of Baroda, Bharti Airtel, Tata Motors and Tech Mahindra are amongst the major Indian companies in Ghana.[288]
Cultural Connexions[edit]
There are about seven to eight thousand Indians and Persons of Indian Origin living in Ghana today with some of them having been there for over 70 years.[282] Ghana is home to a growing indigenous Hindu population that today numbers 3000 families. Hinduism first came to Ghana only in the late 1940s with the Sindhi traders who migrated here following India's Partition. It has been growing in Ghana and neighbouring Togo since the mid-1970s when an African Hindu monastery was established in Accra.[289][290]
Diplomatic Missions[edit]
India maintains a High Commission in Accra and Ghana maintains a High Commission in New Delhi.
India opened a consulate in Accra in 1953 and established full fledged diplomatic relations with Ghana immediately after its independence in 1957. The Indian High Commission in Accra is also concurrently accredited to Burkina Faso, Togo and Sierra Leone. Ghana established its High Commission in New Delhi after its independence.[291]
Ivory Coast[edit]
Main article: Ivory Coast–India relations
The bilateral relations between the Republic of India and the Republic of Ivory Coast have expanded considerably in recent years as India seeks to develop an extensive commercial and strategic partnership in the West African region . The Indian diplomatic mission inAbidjan was opened in 1979. Ivory Coast opened its resident mission in New Delhi in September 2004.[292] Both nations are currently fostering efforts to increase trade, investments and economic cooperation.[293]
Liberia[edit]
Main article: India–Liberia relations
The bilateral relations between the Republic of India and the Republic of Liberia have expanded on growing bilateral trade and strategic cooperation. India is represented in Liberia through its embassy in Abidjan (Ivory Coast) and an active honorary consulate in Monroviasince 1984. Liberia was represented in India through its resident mission in New Delhi which subsequently closed due to budgetary constraints.[294]
Mauritius[edit]
Main article: India–Mauritius relations
The relations between India and Mauritius existed since 1730, diplomatic relations were established in 1948, before Mauritius became independent state.[295] The relationship is very cordial due to cultural affinities and long historical ties that exist between the two nations. More than 68% of the Mauritian population are of Indian origin, most commonly known as Indo-Mauritian. Economic and commercial corporation has been increasing over the years. India has become Mauritius' largest source of imports since 2007 and Mauritius imported US$816 million worth of goods in the April 2010-March 2011 financial year. Mauritius has remained the largest source of FDI for India for more than a decade with FDI equity inflows totalling US$55.2 billion in the period April 2000 to April 2011. India and Mauritius cooperate in combating piracy which has emerged as a major threat in the Indian Ocean region and support India's stand against terrorism.[296]
The relationship between Mauritius and India date back in the early 1730, when artisans were brought from Puducherry and Tamil Nadu.[295] Diplomatic relations between India and Mauritius were established in 1948. Mauritius maintained contacts with India through successive Dutch, French and British occupation. From the 1820s, Indian workers started coming into Mauritius to work on sugar plantations. From 1834 when slavery was abolished by the British Parliament, large numbers of Indian workers began to be brought into Mauritius as indentured labourers. On 2 November 1834 the ship named 'Atlas' docked in Mauritius carrying the first batch of Indian indentured labourers.
Morocco[edit]
Morocco has an embassy in New Delhi. It also has an Honorary Consul based in Mumbai. India operates an embassy in Rabat. Both nations are part of the Non-Aligned Movement.[297]
In the United Nations, India supported the decolonisation of Morocco and the Moroccan freedom movement. India recognised Morocco on 20 June 1956 and established relations in 1957.[298] The Ministry of External Affairs of the Government of India states that "India and Morocco have enjoyed cordial and friendly relations and over the years bilateral relations have witnessed significant depth and growth."[299]
The Indian Council for Cultural Relations promotes indian culture in Morocco.[300] Morocco seeks to increase its trade ties with India and is seeking Indian investment in various sectors[301] The bilateral relations between India and Morocco strengthened after the Moroccan Ambassador to India spent nearly a week in Srinagar, the capital city of Jammu & Kashmir. This showed Moroccan solidarity with India in regard to Kashmir.[301]
Namibia[edit]
Relations between India and Namibia are warm and cordial.[302]
India was one of SWAPO's earliest supporters during the Namibian liberation movement. The first SWAPO embassy was established in India in 1986. India's observer mission was converted to a full High Commission on Namibia's independence day of 21 March 1990.[302]India has helped train the Namibian Air Force since its creation in 1995. The two countries work closely in mutual multilateral organisations such as the United Nations, Non-Aligned Movement and the Commonwealth of Nations. Namibia supports expansion of the United Nations Security Council to include a permanent seat for India.[302]
In 2008–09, trade between the two countries stood at approximately US$80 million. Namibia's main imports from India were drugs and pharmaceuticals, chemicals, agricultural machinery, automobile and automobile parts, glass and glassware, plastic and linoleum products. India primarily imported nonferrous metals, ores and metal scarps. Indian products are also exported to neighboring South Africa and re-imported to Namibia as South African imports. Namibian diamonds are often exported to European diamond markets before being again imported to India. In 2009, the first direct sale of Namibian diamonds to India took place.[302] In 2008, two Indian companies won a US$105 million contract from NamPower to lay a high-voltage direct current bi-polar line from Katima Mulilo toOtjiwarongo.[302] Namibia is a beneficiary of the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) programme for telecommunications professionals from developing countries.[303]
India has a high commissioner in Windhoek[304] and Namibia has a high commissioner in New Delhi. Namibia's high commissioner is also accredited for Bangladesh, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.[305]
Nigeria[edit]
Main article: India–Nigeria relations
India has close relations with this oil rich West African country. Twenty percent of India's crude oil needs are met, by Nigeria. 40,000 barrels per day (6,400 m3/d) of oil, is the amount of oil, that India receives from Nigeria. Trade, between these two countries stands at $875 million in 2005–2006. Indian companies have also invested in manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, iron ore, steel, information technology, and communications, amongst other things. Both India and Nigeria, are members of the Commonwealth of Nations, G-77, and the Non Aligned Movement. The Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo was the guest of honour, at the Republic Day parade, in 1999, and the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, visited Nigeria in 2007, and addressed the Nigerian Parliament.
Rwanda[edit]
Main article: India-Rwanda relations
Indo-Rwandan relations are the foreign relations between the Republic of India and the Republic of Rwanda. India is represented in Rwanda through its Honorary Consulate in Kigali. Rwanda has been operating its High Commission in New Delhi since 1998 and appointed its first resident High Commissioner in 2001.[306]
Seychelles[edit]
Main Article: India - Seychelles relationsIndia–Seychelles relations are bilateral relations between the Republic of India and the Republic of Seychelles. India has a High Commission in Victoria while Seychelles maintains a High Commission in New Delhi.[307]
South Africa[edit]
Main article: India–South Africa relations
India and South Africa, have always had strong relations even though India revoked diplomatic relations in protest to the apartheid regime in the mid 20th century. The history of British rule connects both lands. There is a large group of South Africans of Indian descent.Mahatma Gandhi, spent many years in South Africa, during which time, he fought for the rights of the ethnic Indians. Nelson Mandela was inspired by Gandhi. After India's independence, India strongly condemned apartheid, and refused diplomatic relations while apartheid was conducted as state policy in South Africa.
The two countries, now have close economic, political, and sports relations. Trade between the two countries grew from $3 million in 1992–1993 to $4 billion in 2005–2006, and aim to reach trade of $12 billion by 2010. One third of India's imports from South Africa is gold bullion. Diamonds, that are mined from South Africa, are polished in India. Nelson Mandela was awarded the Gandhi Peace Prize. The two countries are also members of the IBSA Dialogue Forum, with Brazil. India hopes to get large amounts of uranium, from resource rich South Africa, for India's growing civilian nuclear energy sector.
Mozambique[edit]
Main article: India–Mozambique relationsIndia has a high commissioner in Maputo[308] and Mozambique has a high commissioner in New Delhi.
South Sudan[edit]
Main article: India–South Sudan relations
India recognised South Sudan on 10 July 2011, a day after South Sudan became an independent state. At the moment relations are primarily economic. Pramit Pal Chaudhuri wrote in the Hindustan Times that South Sudan "has other[clarification needed] attractions. As the Indian Foreign Ministry's own literature notes, South Sudan [is] 'reported to has (sic) some of the largest oil reserves in Africa outside Nigeria and Angola.'" [309] An article in the The Telegraph read that South Sudan is "one of the poorest [countries] in the world, [but] is oil rich. Foreign ministry officials said New Delhi has [a] keen interest in increasing its investments in the oil fields in South Sudan, which now owns over two-thirds of the erstwhile united Sudan's oil fields."[310]
In return for the oil resources that can be provided by South Sudan, India said it was willing to assist in developing infrastructure, training officials in health, education and rural development. "We have compiled a definite road map using (sic) which India can help South Sudan."[311]
Sudan[edit]
Indo-Sudanese relations have always been characterised as longstanding, close, and friendly, even since the early development stages of their countries.At the time of Indian independence, Sudan had contributed 70,000 pounds, which was used to build part of the National Defence Academy in Pune. The main building of NDA is called Sudan Block. The two nations established diplomatic relations shortly after India became known as one of the first Asian countries to recognise the newly independent African country. India and Sudan also share geographic and historical similarities, as well as economic interests. Both countries are former British colonies, and remotely border Saudi Arabia by means of a body of water. India and Sudan continue to have cordial relations, despite issues such asIndia's close relationship with Israel, India's solidarity with Egypt over border issues with Sudan, and Sudan's intimate bonds with Pakistan and Bangladesh. India had also contributed some troops as United Nations peacekeeping force in Darfur.
Uganda[edit]
Main article: India-Uganda relationsIndia and Uganda established diplomatic relations in 1965 and each maintain a High Commission in the other's capital. The Indian High Commission in Kampala has concurrent accreditation to Burundi and Rwanda. Uganda hosts a large Indian community and India–Uganda relations cover a broad range of sectors including political, economic, commercial, cultural and scientific cooperation.[312]
Relations between India and Uganda began with the arrival of over 30,000 Indians in Uganda in the 19th century who were brought there to construct the Mombasa–Kampala railway line. Ugandan independence activists were inspired in their struggle for Ugandan independence by the success of the Indian freedom struggle and were also supported in their struggle by Indian Prime MinisterJawaharlal Nehru.[313][314] Indo-Ugandan relations have been good since Uganda's independence except during the regime of Idi Amin. Amin in 1972 expelled over 55,000 people of Indian origin and 5,000 Indians who had largely formed the commercial and economic backbone of the country accusing them of exploiting native Ugandans.[314][315] Since the mid-1980s when President Yoweri Musevenicame to power, relations have steadily improved. Today some 20,000 Indians and PIOs live or work in Uganda.[314] Ethnic tensions between Indians and Ugandans have been a recurring issue in bilateral relations given the role of Indians in the Ugandan economy.[316][317]
International organisations[edit]
India participates in the following international organisations:[318]
- AALCO - Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization
- ADB – Asian Development Bank
- AfDB – African Development Bank (non-regional members)
- ASEAN Regional Forum
- ASEAN (dialogue partner)
- BIMSTEC – Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multisectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation
- BIS – Bank for International Settlements
- Commonwealth of Nations
- CERN – European Organisation for Nuclear Research (observer)
- CP – Colombo Plan
- EAS – East Asia Summit
- FAO – Food and Agriculture Organisation
- G-15G-20
- G-24
- G-77
- IAEA – International Atomic Energy Agency
- IBRD – International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank)
- ICAO – International Civil Aviation Organisation
- ICC – International Chamber of Commerce
- ICRM – International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
- IDA – International Development Association
- IFAD – International Fund for Agricultural Development
- IFC – International Finance Corporation
- IFRCS – International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
- IHO – International Hydrographic Organisation
- ILO – International Labour Organisation
- IMF – International Monetary Fund
- IMO – International Maritime Organisation
- IMSO – International Mobile Satellite Organisation
- Interpol – International Criminal Police Organisation
- IOC – International Olympic Committee
- IOM – International Organisation for Migration (observer)
- IPU – Inter-parliamentary Union
- ISO – International Organisation for Standardisation
- ITSO – International Telecommunications Satellite Organisation
- ITU – International Telecommunication Union
- ITUC – International Trade Union Confederation (the successor to ICFTU (International Confederation of Free Trade Unions) and the WCL (World Confederation of Labour))
- LAS – League of Arab States (observer)
- MIGA – Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency
- MONUC – United Nations Organisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
- NAM – Nonaligned Movement
- OAS – Organisation of American States (observer)
- OPCW – Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
- PCA – Permanent Court of Arbitration
- PIF – Pacific Islands Forum (partner)
- SAARC – South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation
- SACEP – South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme
- SCO – Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (observer)
- UN – United Nations
- UNCTAD – United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
- UNDOF – United Nations Disengagement Observer Force
- UNESCO – United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation
- UNHCR – United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
- UNIDO – United Nations Industrial Development Organisation
- UNIFIL – United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon
- UNMEE – United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea
- UNMIS – United Nations Mission in Sudan
- UNOCI – United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire
- UNWTO – World Tourism Organisation
- UPU – Universal Postal Union
- WCL – World Confederation of Labour
- WCO – World Customs Organisation
- WFTU – World Federation of Trade Unions
- WHO – World Health Organisation
- WIPO – World Intellectual Property Organisation
- WMO – World Meteorological Organisation
- WTO – World Trade Organisation
Non-Aligned Movement[edit]
Main article: India and the Non-Aligned MovementIndia played an important role in the multilateral movements of colonies and newly independent countries that developed into the Non-Aligned Movement.
Nonalignment had its origins in India's colonial experience and the nonviolent Indian independence struggle led by the Congress, which left India determined to be the master of its fate in an international system dominated politically by Cold War alliances and economically by Western capitalism and Soviet communism. The principles of nonalignment, as articulated by Nehru and his successors, were preservation of India's freedom of action internationally through refusal to align India with any bloc or alliance, particularly those led by the United States or the Soviet Union; nonviolence and international cooperation as a means of settling international disputes. Nonalignment was a consistent feature of Indian foreign policy by the late 1940s and enjoyed strong, almost unquestioning support among the Indian elite.
The term "Non-Alignment" was coined by V K Menon in his speech at UN in 1953 which was later used by Indian Prime Minister,Jawaharlal Nehru during his speech in 1954 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. In this speech, Nehru described the five pillars to be used as a guide for Sino-Indian relations, which were first put forth by PRC Premier Zhou Enlai. Called Panchsheel (five restraints), these principles would later serve as the basis of the Non-Aligned Movement. The five principles were:
- Mutual respect for each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty
- Mutual non-aggression
- Mutual non-interference in domestic affairs
- Equality and mutual benefit
- Peaceful co-existence
Jawaharlal Nehru's concept of nonalignment brought India considerable international prestige among newly independent states that shared India's concerns about the military confrontation between the superpowers and the influence of the former colonial powers. New Delhi used nonalignment to establish a significant role for itself as a leader of the newly independent world in such multilateral organisations as the United Nations (UN) and the Nonaligned Movement. The signing of the Treaty of Peace, Friendship, and Cooperation between India and the Soviet Union in 1971 and India's involvement in the internal affairs of its smaller neighbours in the 1970s and 1980s tarnished New Delhi's image as a nonaligned nation and led some observers to note that in practice, nonalignment applied only to India's relations with countries outside South Asia.
United Nations[edit]
Main article: India and the United Nations
As a founder member of the United Nations, India has been a firm supporter of the Purposes and Principles of the United Nations, and has made significant contributions to the furtherance and implementation of these noble aims, and to the evolution and functioning of its various specialised programmes. It stood at the forefront during the UN's tumultuous years of struggle against colonialism and apartheid, its struggle towards global disarmament and the ending of the arms race, and towards the creation of a more equitable international economic order. At the very first session of the UN, India had raised its voice against colonialism and apartheid, two issues which have been among the most significant of the UN's successes in the last half century. India exulted in the UN's triumph, and saw in the UN's victory, a vindication of the policy relentlessly pursued by it from its initial days at the world forum. India has been a participant in all its peace-keeping operations including those in Korea, Egypt and Congo in earlier years and in Somalia, Angola and Rwanda in recent years. India has also played an active role in the deliberations of the United Nations on the creation of a more equitable international economic order. It has been an active member of the Group of 77, and later the core group of the G-15 nations. Other issues, such as environmentally sustainable development and the promotion and protection of human rights, have also been an important focus of India's foreign policy in international forums. See moreWorld Trade Organisation[edit]
Described by WTO chief Pascal Lamy as one of the organisation's "big brothers",[319] India was instrumental in bringing down the Doha round of talks in 2008.[320] It has played an important role of representing as many as 100 developing nations during WTO summits.[321]
SAARC[edit]
Certain aspects of India's relations within the subcontinent are conducted through the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). Its members are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Established in 1985, SAARC encourages cooperation in agriculture, rural development, science and technology, culture, health, population control, narcotics control and anti-terrorism.
SAARC has intentionally stressed these "core issues" and avoided more divisive political issues, although political dialogue is often conducted on the margins of SAARC meetings. In 1993, India and its SAARC partners signed an agreement to gradually lower tariffs within the region. Forward movement in SAARC has come to a standstill because of the tension between India and Pakistan, and the SAARC Summit originally scheduled for, but not held in, November 1999 has not been rescheduled. The Fourteenth SAARC Summit was held during 3–4 April 2007 in New Delhi.
International disputes[edit]
India's territorial disputes with neighbouring Pakistan and People's Republic of China have played a crucial role in its foreign policy. India is also involved in minor territorial disputes with neighbouring Bangladesh, Nepal and Maldives. India currently maintains two manned stations in Antarctica but has made some unofficial territorial claims, which are yet to be clarified.
India is involved in the following international disputes:
Bangladesh[edit]
- 6.5 km of the border between India and Bangladesh remains to be demarcated.
- Ongoing discussions with Bangladesh to exchange 162 minuscule enclaves between the two.
Nepal[edit]
- Kalapani village of India is claimed by Nepal and Nawalparasi district of Nepal is claimed by India.
The dispute between India and Nepal involves about 75 km2 (29 sq mi) of area in Kalapani, where China, India, and Nepal meet. Indian forces occupied the area in 1962 after China and India fought their border war. Three villages are located in the disputed zone: Kuti [Kuthi, 30°19'N, 80°46'E], Gunji, and Knabe. India and Nepal disagree about how to interpret the 1816 Sugauli treaty between the British East India Company and Nepal, which delimited the boundary along the Maha Kali River (Sarda River in India). The dispute intensified in 1997 as the Nepali parliament considered a treaty on hydro-electric development of the river. India and Nepal differ as to which stream constitutes the source of the river. Nepal regards the Limpiyadhura as the source; India claims the Lipu Lekh. Nepal has reportedly tabled an 1856 map from the British India Office to support its position. The countries have held several meetings about the dispute and discussed jointly surveying to resolve the issue.[322] Although the Indo-Nepali dispute appears to be minor, it was aggravated in 1962 by tensions between China and India. Because the disputed area lies near the Sino-Indian frontier, it gains strategic value.[323]
Maldives[edit]
- Some in the Maldives claim that Minicoy Island is Maldivian; although there is no official Maldivian claim to the atoll.[324] In addition,Maldives and India have made arrangements to allow Maldivians to travel directly to Minicoy without a visa. The Framework Agreement on Cooperation for Development, which was signed by former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during his recent visit to the Maldives, includes an article on establishing a transport network between the Maldives and Minicoy.
The earlier policy required Maldivians to get a visa from New Delhi before boarding a ferry en route to Minicoy from India's Kochi. TheGovernment of the Maldives has stressed that the ferry service to be established between Kulhudhuffushi in Haa Dhaal atoll and Minicoywill also allow cargo to be transported between the Maldives and Minicoy. President Nasheed also expressed hope to start a regular passenger cargo ferry service between the Maldives and Minicoy in the near future.[325]
Pakistan[edit]
- The unresolved Kashmir dispute and the status of Kashmir with Pakistan, India claims the disputed territories in Pakistan known as Azad Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan, while Pakistan disputes India's administration of Jammu and Kashmir.
- Dispute over Sir Creek and the maritime boundary regarding the Rann of Kachchh area of India.
- Water-sharing problems with Pakistan over the Indus River (Wular Barrage). (Indus Water Treaty)
- Pakistani sponsorship of terrorism in India
People's Republic of China[edit]
- India claims Aksai Chin and Trans-Karakoram Tract, as part of Jammu and Kashmir.
- China claims most of Arunachal Pradesh, a contested disputed territory of north-east India by not recognising the McMahon Line.
Two regions are claimed by both India and China. Aksai Chin is in the disputed territory of Kashmir, at the junction of India, Tibet and Azad Kashmir. India claims the 38,000-square-kilometre territory, currently administered by China. India also considers the cessation of Shaksam Valley to China by Pakistan as illegal and a part of its territory. Arunachal Pradesh is a state of India in the country's northeast, bordering on Bhutan, Burma and China. Though it is under Indian administration, China calls the 90,000-square-kilometre area as South Tibet. Also the boundary between theNorth Indian states of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand with China's Tibet is not properly demarcated with some portions under de facto administration of India.[326]
Further reading[edit]
- Cohen, Stephen P., and Sunil Dasgupta. Arming Without Aiming: India's Military Modernisation (2010) excerpt and text search
- Gaan, Narottam. India and the United States: from Estrangement to Engagement (2007)
- Ganguly, Sumit. India's Foreign Policy: Retrospect and Prospect (2012)
- Guha, Ramachandra. India After Gandhi: The History of the World's Largest Democracy (2008) excerpt and text search
- Jain, B. M. Global Power: India's Foreign Policy, 1947-2006 (2009)
- Jain, Rashmi K. The United States and India: 1947-2006 A Documentary Study (2007)
- Kust, Matthew J. Foreign Enterprise in India: Laws and Policies (2011)
- Malone, David. Does the Elephant Dance?: Contemporary Indian Foreign Policy (2011) excerpt and text search
- Michael, Arndt. India's Foreign Policy and Regional Multilateralism (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013) - Chapter 2: Ideas, Norms, and the Evolution of India's Foreign Policy 1947-2012, pp. 21–47.
- Muni, S. D. India's Foreign Policy: The Democracy Dimension (2009)
- Schaffer, Teresita C. India and the United States in the 21st Century: Reinventing Partnership (2009)
See also[edit]
- List of dignitaries to visit India
- List of state guests on Indian Republic Day (1950–)
- List of diplomatic missions in India
- List of diplomatic missions of India
- Research and Analysis Wing
- Role of India in nonaligned movement
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- ^ "India to put $1bn in African oil". BBC. 2006-08-14. Retrieved 2008-10-02.
- ^ "Embassy of India". Ministry of External Affairs. 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-28.
- ^ a b Mookhesswur Choonee. "A Perspective for Future".http://issuu.com. p. 4. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
- ^ "India Special Report – T.P. Seetharam : Mauritius has remained the largest source of FDI for India for more than a decade". Le Defimedia. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
- ^ The Non-Aligned Movement: Member States
- ^ Morocco - India Relations
- ^ http://mea.gov.in/mystart.php?id=50044502
- ^ Indian Embassy in Rabat, Morocco
- ^ a b Morocco proposes to "spice up" bilateral relations with India
- ^ a b c d e Indo-Namibian Relations Ministry of External Affairs of India, September 2010
- ^ Pohamba Visits India New Era, 31 August 2009
- ^ High Commission of India in Namibia
- ^ High Commission of the Republic of Namibia in the Republic of India
- ^ "India-Rwanda Relations". Ministry of External Affairs. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
- ^ "High Commission of India, Seychelles". Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- ^ High Commission of India in Mozambique
- ^ http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-s-stake-in-South-Sudan/Article1-718966.aspx
- ^ The Telegraph (Calcutta, India)http://www.telegraphindia.com
|url=missing title (help). - ^ India greets South Sudan
- ^ "High Commission of India in Kampala". Retrieved 27 December 2012.
- ^ "India is Uganda's biggest investor, trading partner". New Vision. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
- ^ a b c "India-Uganda Relations". High Commission of India in Kampala. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
- ^ Bhatia, Rajiv (10 April 2012). "Idi Amin under Indian scanner". The Hindu (Chennai, India). Retrieved 27 December 2012.
- ^ "Ugandan Minister assures Indian business his country is safe". HT Mint. 4 May 2007. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
- ^ "Uganda killing: four held". The Hindu (Chennai, India). 17 April 2007. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
- ^ CIA World Fact Bookhttps://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/in.html
- ^ "India is among "big brothers" of WTO: Pascal Lamy- Foreign Trade-Economy-News-The Economic Times". Economictimes.indiatimes.com. 2008-08-17. Retrieved 2009-11-21.
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- ^ Ramesh Trivedi (2007). India's Relations with her Neighbours(Isha Books, ISBN 978-81-8205-438-7) p. 177.
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External links[edit]
- Foreign Relations: Ministry of external affairs, Government of India
- Harvard University homepage India's Foreign Policy, Xenia Dormandy
- List of Treaties ruling relations Argentina and India (Argentine Foreign Ministry, in Spanish)
- Indian embassy in Buenos Aires
- Indian embassy in Rome
- Italian embassy in New Delhi
- Italian general consulate in Mumbai
- Italian general consulate in Calcutta
- IBSA – India, Brazil, South Africa – News and Media
-
Bangladesh Liberation War
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaBangladesh Liberation War Date 26 March – 16 December 1971
(8 months, 2 weeks and 2 days)Location East Pakistan, the Bay of Bengal Result Indo-Bangladeshi victory Territorial
changesEast Pakistan secedes to become independent Bangladesh. Belligerents 
Bangladesh PakistanParamilitary Forces :
Commanders and leaders General M. A. G. Osmani
Major K. M. Shafiullah
Major Ziaur Rahman
Major Khaled Mosharraf
Lt.Gen. J.S. Aurora
FM Sam Manekshaw
Lt.Gen. Sagat Singh
Maj.Gen. J. F. R. Jacob
LGen A.A.K. Niazi 
LGen Tikka Khan
General Abdul Hamid Khan
RAdm Mohammad Shariff
AVM Patrick D. Callaghan
Air-CDRE Enamul Huq
Maj.Gen. Khadim Hossein Raja
Maj.Gen. Rao Farman Ali
Maj.Gen. A. O. Mitha
Maj.Gen. Mohd Jamshed
Brigg. Jahanzeb Arbab
Ghulam Azam (Shanti committee)
Motiur Rahman Nizami(Al-Badr)Strength Bangladesh Forces: 175,000[2][3]
India: 250,000[2]Pakistan Armed Forces: ~ 365,000 (90,000 in East Pakistan)[2]
Para Military: ~250,000[4]
Casualties and losses Bangladesh Forces:30,000
India: 1,426 KIA
3,611 Wounded (Official)
1,525 KIA
4,061 Wounded[5]Pakistan ~8,000 KIA[citation needed]
~10,000 WIA[citation needed]
93,000[6] POWs
(56,694 Armed Forces
12,192 Paramilitary
rest civilians)[5][7]Civilian death toll: Estimated between 300,000[8] and 3,000,000[9] The Bangladesh Liberation War[a] (Bengali: মুক্তিযুদ্ধ Muktijuddho) was a revolutionary war of independence in 1971 that established the sovereign nation of Bangladesh.[13] The war pitted East Pakistan and India against West Pakistan, and lasted over a duration of nine months. It witnessed large-scale atrocities, the exodus of 10 million refugees and the displacement of 30 million people.[14]
The war broke out on 26 March 1971, when the Pakistani Army launched a military operation called Operation Searchlight against Bengali civilians, students, intelligentsia and armed personnel, who were demanding that the Pakistani military junta accept the results of the 1970 first democratic elections of Pakistan, which were won by an eastern party, or to allow separation between East and West Pakistan. Bengali politicians and army officers announced the declaration of Bangladesh's independence in response to Operation Searchlight. Bengali military, paramilitary and civilians formed theMukti Bahini (Bengali: মুক্তি বাহিনী "Liberation Army"), which engaged inguerrilla warfare against Pakistani forces. The Pakistan Army, in collusion with religious extremist[15][16] militias (the Razakars, Al-Badr and Al-Shams), engaged in the systematic genocide and atrocities of Bengali civilians, particularly nationalists, intellectuals, youth and religious minorities.[17][18][19][20][21] Neighbouring India provided economic, military and diplomatic support to Bengali nationalists, and the Bangladesh government-in-exile was set up in Calcutta.
India entered the war on 3 December 1971, after Pakistan launched pre-emptive air strikes on northern India. Overwhelmed by two war fronts, Pakistani defences soon collapsed. On 16 December, the Allied Forces of Bangladesh and India defeated Pakistan in the east. The subsequent surrender resulted in the largest number of prisoners-of-war since World War II.
Contents
[hide]Background[edit]
In August 1947, the official birth of two states Pakistan and India;[22] gave a permanent home for Hindus and Muslims from the departure of the British. The Dominion of Pakistan comprised two geographically and culturally separate areas to the east and the west with India in between.[23]The western zone was popularly (and for a period of time, also officially) termed West Pakistan and the eastern zone (modern-day Bangladesh) was initially termed East Bengal and later, East Pakistan. Although the population of the two zones was close to equal, political power was concentrated in West Pakistan and it was widely perceived that East Pakistan was being exploited economically, leading to many grievances. Administration of two discontinuous territories was also seen as a challenge.[24] On 25 March 1971, after an election won by an East Pakistani political party (the Awami League) was ignored by the ruling (West Pakistani) establishment, rising political discontent and cultural nationalism in East Pakistan was met by brutal[25] suppressive force from the ruling elite of the West Pakistan establishment,[26] in what came to be termed Operation Searchlight.[27]
The violent crackdown by West Pakistan forces[28] led to Awami League leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declaring East Pakistan's independence as the state of Bangladesh on 26 March 1971.[29] Pakistani President Agha Mohammed Yahya ordered the Pakistani military to restore the Pakistani government's authority, beginning the civil war.[29] The war led to a sea of refugees (estimated at the time to be about 10 million)[30][31] flooding into the eastern provinces of India.[30] Facing a mounting humanitarian and economic crisis, India started actively aiding and organising the Bangladeshi resistance army known as the Mukti Bahini.
Language controversy[edit]
Main article: Bengali Language Movement
The neutrality of this section is disputed. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (June 2013) In 1948, Mohammad Ali Jinnah, Pakistan's first Governor-General, declared in Dhaka (then usually spelled Dacca in English) that "Urdu, and only Urdu" would be the common language for all of Pakistan.[32] This proved highly controversial, since Urdu was a language that was only spoken in the West by Muhajirs and in the East by Biharis, although the Urdu language had been promoted as the lingua franca of Indian Muslims by political and religious leaders such as Sir Khwaja Salimullah, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Nawab Viqar-ul-Mulk and Maulvi Abdul Haq. The language was considered a vital element of the Islamic culture for Indian Muslims; Hindi and the Devanagari script were seen as fundamentals of Hindu culture. The majority groups in the western wing of the Dominion of Pakistan (provinces, states and tribal areas merged in 1956 as West Pakistan) spoke Punjabi, while the Bengali language was spoken by the vast majority of East Bengalis (from 1956, East Pakistan).[33] The language controversy eventually reached a point where East Bengal revolted while the other part ofPakistan remained calm even though Punjabi was spoken by the majority of the population of the western wing. Several students and civilians lost their lives in a police crackdown on 21 February 1952.[33] The day is revered in Bangladesh and in West Bengal as the Language Martyrs' Day. Later, in memory of the 1952 deaths, UNESCO declared 21 February as the International Mother Language Day in 1999.[34]
In the western wing, the movement was seen as a sectional uprising against Pakistani national interests[35] and the founding ideology of Pakistan, the Two-Nation Theory.[36] West Pakistani politicians considered Urdu a product of Indian Islamic culture,[37] as Ayub Khan said, as late as 1967, "East Pakistanis... still are under considerable Hindu culture and influence."[37] However, the deaths led to bitter feelings among East Bengalis, and they were a major factor in the push for independence in 1971.[36][37]
Disparities[edit]
Although East Pakistan had a larger population, West Pakistan dominated the divided country politically and received more money from the common budget.
Year Spending on West Pakistan (in millions ofPakistani rupees) Spending on East Pakistan (in millions of Pakistani rupees) Amount spent on East as percentage of West 1950–55 11,290 5,240 46.4 1955–60 16,550 5,240 31.7 1960–65 33,550 14,040 41.8 1965–70 51,950 21,410 41.2 Total 113,340 45,930 40.5 Source: Reports of the Advisory Panels for the Fourth Five Year Plan 1970–75, Vol. I,
published by the planning commission of Pakistan.Bengalis were under-represented in the Pakistan military. Officers of Bengali origin in the different wings of the armed forces made up just 5% of overall force by 1965; of these, only a few were in command positions, with the majority in technical or administrative posts.[38] West Pakistanis believed that Bengalis were not "martially inclined" unlike Pashtuns and Punjabis; the "Martial Races" notion was dismissed as ridiculous and humiliating by Bengalis.[38] Moreover, despite huge defence spending, East Pakistan received none of the benefits, such as contracts, purchasing and military support jobs. The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 over Kashmir also highlighted the sense of military insecurity among Bengalis, as only an under-strength infantry division and 15 combat aircraft without tank support were in East Pakistan to thwart any Indian retaliations during the conflict.[39][40]
Political differences[edit]
Although East Pakistan accounted for a slight majority of the country's population,[41] political power remained in the hands of West Pakistanis. Since a straightforward system of representation based on population would have concentrated political power in East Pakistan, the West Pakistani establishment came up with the "One Unit" scheme, where all of West Pakistan was considered one province. This was solely to counterbalance the East wing's votes.
After the assassination of Liaquat Ali Khan, Pakistan's first prime minister, in 1951, political power began to devolve to the President of Pakistan, and eventually, the military. The nominal elected chief executive, the Prime Minister, was frequently sacked by the establishment, acting through the President.
The East Pakistanis observed that the West Pakistani establishment would swiftly depose any East Pakistanis elected Prime Minister of Pakistan, such as Khawaja Nazimuddin, Muhammad Ali Bogra, or Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy. Their suspicions were further influenced by the military dictatorships of Ayub Khan (27 October 1958 – 25 March 1969) and Yahya Khan (25 March 1969 – 20 December 1971), both West Pakistanis. The situation reached a climax in 1970, when the Awami League, the largest East Pakistani political party, led by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, won a landslide victory in the national elections. The party won 167 of the 169 seats allotted to East Pakistan, and thus a majority of the 313 seats in the National Assembly. This gave the Awami League the constitutional right to form a government. However, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (a Sindhi and former Foreign Minister), the leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party, refused to allow Rahman to become the Prime Minister of Pakistan.[42] Instead, he proposed the idea of having two Prime Ministers, one for each wing. The proposal elicited outrage in the east wing, already chafing under the other constitutional innovation, the "one unit scheme". Bhutto also refused to accept Rahman's Six Points. On 3 March 1971, the two leaders of the two wings along with the President General Yahya Khan met in Dhaka to decide the fate of the country. After their discussions yielded no satisfactory results, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman called for a nationwide strike. Bhutto feared a civil war, therefore, he sent his trusted companion, Dr. Mubashir Hassan.[42] A message was convened and Mujib decided to meet Bhutto.[42] Upon his arrival, Mujib met with Bhutto and both agreed to form a coalition government with Mujib as Premier and Bhutto as President.[42] However, the military was unaware of these developments, and Bhutto increased his pressure on Mujib to reach a decision.[42]
On 7 March 1971, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (soon to be the prime minister) delivered a speech at the Racecourse Ground (now called the Suhrawardy Udyan). In this speech he mentioned a further four-point condition to consider at the National Assembly Meeting on 25 March:
- The immediate lifting of martial law.
- Immediate withdrawal of all military personnel to their barracks.
- An inquiry into the loss of life.
- Immediate transfer of power to the elected representative of the people before the assembly meeting 25 March.
He urged his people to turn every house into a fort of resistance. He closed his speech saying, "Our struggle is for our freedom. Our struggle is for our independence." This speech is considered the main event that inspired the nation to fight for its independence. General Tikka Khan was flown into Dhaka to become Governor of East Bengal. East-Pakistani judges, including Justice Siddique, refused to swear him in.
Between 10 and 13 March, Pakistan International Airlines cancelled all their international routes to urgently fly "government passengers" to Dhaka. These "government passengers" were almost all Pakistani soldiers in civilian dress. MV Swat, a ship of the Pakistan Navy carrying ammunition and soldiers, was harboured in Chittagong Port, but the Bengali workers and sailors at the port refused to unload the ship. A unit of East Pakistan Rifles refused to obey commands to fire on the Bengali demonstrators, beginning a mutiny among the Bengali soldiers.
Response to the 1970 cyclone[edit]
The 1970 Bhola cyclone made landfall on the East Pakistan coastline during the evening of 12 November, around the same time as a local high tide,[43] killing an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 people. Though the exact death toll is not known, it is considered the deadliest tropical cyclone on record.[44] A week after the landfall, President Khan conceded that his government had made "slips" and "mistakes" in its handling of the relief efforts due to a lack of understanding of the magnitude of the disaster.[45]
A statement released by eleven political leaders in East Pakistan ten days after the cyclone hit charged the government with "gross neglect, callous and utter indifference". They also accused the president of playing down the magnitude of the problem in news coverage.[46] On 19 November, students held a march in Dhaka protesting the slowness of the government's response.[47] Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani addressed a rally of 50,000 people on 24 November, where he accused the president of inefficiency and demanded his resignation.
As the conflict between East and West Pakistan developed in March, the Dhaka offices of the two government organisations directly involved in relief efforts were closed for at least two weeks, first by a general strike and then by a ban on government work in East Pakistan by the Awami League. With this increase in tension, foreign personnel were evacuated over fears of violence. Relief work continued in the field, but long-term planning was curtailed.[48] This conflict widened into the Bangladesh Liberation War in December and concluded with the creation of Bangladesh. This is one of the first times that a natural event helped to trigger a civil war.[49]
Operation Searchlight[edit]
Main article: Operation SearchlightA planned military pacification carried out by the Pakistan Army – codenamed Operation Searchlight – started on 25 March to curb the Bengali nationalist movement[50] by taking control of the major cities on 26 March, and then eliminating all opposition, political or military,[51] within one month. Before the beginning of the operation, all foreign journalists were systematically deported from East Pakistan.[52]
The main phase of Operation Searchlight ended with the fall of the last major town in Bengali hands in mid-May. The operation also began the 1971 Bangladesh atrocities. These systematic killings served only to enrage the Bengalis, which ultimately resulted in the secession of East Pakistan later in the same year. The international media and reference books in English have published casualty figures which vary greatly, from 5,000–35,000 in Dhaka, and 200,000–3,000,000 for Bangladesh as a whole,[53] and the atrocities have been referred to as acts of genocide.[54][55]
According to the Asia Times,[56]
At a meeting of the military top brass, Yahya Khan declared: "Kill 3 million of them and the rest will eat out of our hands." Accordingly, on the night of 25 March, the Pakistani Army launched Operation Searchlight to "crush" Bengali resistance in which Bengali members of military services were disarmed and killed, students and the intelligentsia systematically liquidated and able-bodied Bengali males just picked up and gunned down.
Although the violence focused on the provincial capital, Dhaka, it also affected all parts of East Pakistan. Residential halls of theUniversity of Dhaka were particularly targeted. The only Hindu residential hall – the Jagannath Hall – was destroyed by the Pakistani armed forces, and an estimated 600 to 700 of its residents were murdered. The Pakistani army denied any cold blooded killings at the university, though the Hamood-ur-Rehman commission in Pakistan concluded that overwhelming force was used at the university. This fact and the massacre at Jagannath Hall and nearby student dormitories of Dhaka University are corroborated by a videotape secretly filmed by Prof. Nurullah of the East Pakistan Engineering University, whose residence was directly opposite the student dormitories.[57]
The scale of the atrocities was first made clear in the West when Anthony Mascarenhas, a Pakistani journalist who had been sent to the province by the military authorities to write a story favourable to Pakistan's actions, instead fled to the United Kingdom and, on 13 June 1971, published an article in the Sunday Times describing the systematic killings by the military. The BBC wrote: "There is little doubt that Mascarenhas' reportage played its part in ending the war. It helped turn world opinion against Pakistan and encouraged India to play a decisive role", with Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi herself stating that Mascarenhas' article has led her "to prepare the ground for India's armed intervention".[58]
Hindu areas suffered particularly heavy blows. By midnight, Dhaka was burning, especially the Hindu dominated eastern part of the city.Time magazine reported on 2 August 1971, "The Hindus, who account for three-fourths of the refugees and a majority of the dead, have borne the brunt of the Pakistani military hatred."[59]
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was arrested by the Pakistani Army. Yahya Khan appointed Brigadier (later General) Rahimuddin Khan to preside over a special tribunal prosecuting Mujib with multiple charges. The tribunal's sentence was never made public, but Yahya caused the verdict to be held in abeyance in any case. Other Awami League leaders were arrested as well, while a few fled Dhaka to avoid arrest. The Awami League was banned by General Yahya Khan.[60]
Declaration of independence[edit]
The violence unleashed by the Pakistani forces on 25 March 1971, proved the last straw to the efforts to negotiate a settlement. Following these outrages, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman signed an official declaration that read:
Today Bangladesh is a sovereign and independent country. On Thursday night, West Pakistani armed forces suddenly attacked the police barracks at Razarbagh and the EPR headquarters at Pilkhana in Dhaka. Many innocent and unarmed have been killed in Dhaka city and other places of Bangladesh. Violent clashes between E.P.R. and Police on the one hand and the armed forces of Pakistan on the other, are going on. The Bengalis are fighting the enemy with great courage for an independent Bangladesh. May Allah aid us in our fight for freedom. Joy Bangla [May Bangladesh be victorious].
Sheikh Mujib also called upon the people to resist the occupation forces through a radio message. Mujib was arrested on the night of 25–26 March 1971 at about 1:30 am (as per Radio Pakistan's news on 29 March 1971).
A telegram containing the text of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's declaration reached some students in Chittagong. The message was translated to Bengali by Dr. Manjula Anwar. The students failed to secure permission from higher authorities to broadcast the message from the nearby Agrabad Station of Radio Pakistan. They crossed Kalurghat Bridge into an area controlled by an East Bengal Regiment under Major Ziaur Rahman. Bengali soldiers guarded the station as engineers prepared for transmission. At 7:45 PM on 26 March 1971,[61] Major Ziaur Rahman broadcast announcement of the declaration of independence on behalf of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
This is Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra. I, Major Ziaur Rahman, at the direction of Bangobondhu Mujibur Rahman, hereby declare that Independent People's Republic of Bangladesh has been established. At his direction , I have taken the command as the temporary Head of the Republic. In the name of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, I call upon all Bengalees to rise against the attack by the West Pakistani Army. We shall fight to the last to free our motherland. Victory is, by the Grace of Allah, ours. Joy Bangla.[62]
The Kalurghat Radio Station's transmission capability was limited, but the message was picked up by a Japanese ship in Bay of Bengal. It was then re-transmitted by Radio Australia[63] and later by the British Broadcasting Corporation.
M A Hannan, an Awami League leader from Chittagong, is said to have made the first announcement of the declaration of independence over the radio on 26 March 1971.[64] There is controversy now as to when Major Zia gave his speech. BNP sources maintain that it was 26 March, and there was no message regarding declaration of independence from Mujibur Rahman. Pakistani sources, like Maj. Gen. Fazal Muqeem Khan in his book "PAKISTAN'S CRISIS IN LEADERSHIP"[65] Brigadier Zahir Alam Khan in his book "THE WAY IT WAS"[66] and Lt. Gen. Kamal Matinuddin in his book "TRAGEDY OF ERRORS:EAST PAKISTAN CRISIS, 1968–1971"[67] had written that they heard Major Zia's speech on 26 March 1971 but Maj. Gen. Hakeem A. Qureshi in his book "THE 1971 INDO-PAK WAR: A SOLDIER'S NARRATIVE"[68] (Oxford University Press, Karachi,2002), gives the date of Major Zia's speech as 27 March 1971.
26 March 1971 is considered the official Independence Day of Bangladesh, and the name Bangladesh was in effect henceforth. In July 1971, Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi openly referred to the former East Pakistan as Bangladesh.[69] Some Pakistani and Indian officials continued to use the name "East Pakistan" until 16 December 1971.
Liberation war[edit]
Main article: Bangladesh War timelineMarch to June[edit]
See also: Mukti BahiniAt first resistance was spontaneous and disorganised, and was not expected to be prolonged.[70] However, when the Pakistani Army cracked down upon the population, resistance grew. The Mukti Bahini became increasingly active. The Pakistani military sought to quell them, but increasing numbers of Bengali soldiers defected to the underground "Bangladesh army". These Bengali units slowly merged into the Mukti Bahini and bolstered their weaponry with supplies from India. Pakistan responded by airlifting in two infantry divisions and reorganising their forces. They also raised paramilitary forces of Razakars, Al-Badrs and Al-Shams (who were mostly members of the Muslim League, Jamaat E Islami and other Islamist groups), as well as other Bengalis who opposed independence, and Bihari Muslims who had settled during the time of partition.
On 17 April 1971, a provisional government was formed in Meherpur district in western Bangladesh bordering India with Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who was in prison in Pakistan, as President, Syed Nazrul Islam as Acting President, Tajuddin Ahmed as Prime Minister, and General Muhammad Ataul Ghani Osmani as Commander-in-Chief, Bangladesh Forces. As fighting grew between the occupation army and the Bengali Mukti Bahini, an estimated 10 million Bengalis, sought refuge in the Indian states of Assam and West Bengal.[71]
June – September[edit]
Bangladesh forces command was set up on 11 July, with Col. M. A. G. Osmani as commander-in-chief (C-in-C) with the status of Cabinet Minister, Lt. Col., Abdur Rabb as chief of Staff (COS), Group Captain A K Khandker as Deputy Chief of Staff (DCOS) and Major A R Chowdhury as Assistant Chief of Staff (ACOS).
General Osmani had differences of opinion with the Indian leadership regarding the role of the Mukti Bahini in the conflict. Indian leadership initially envisioned Bengali forces to be trained into a small elite guerrilla force of 8,000 members, led by the surviving East Bengal Regiment soldiers operating in small cells around Bangladesh to facilitate the eventual Indian intervention,[72] but the Bangladesh Government in exile and General Osmani favoured the following strategy:[73][74]
- Bengali conventional force would occupy lodgment areas inside Bangladesh and then Bangladesh government would request international diplomatic recognition and intervention. Initially Mymensingh was picked for this operation, but Gen. Osmani later settled on Sylhet.
- Sending the maximum number to guerrillas inside Bangladesh as soon as possible with the following objectives:[75][76]
- Increasing Pakistani casualties through raids and ambush.
- Cripple economic activity by hitting power stations, railway lines, storage depots and communication networks.
- Destroy Pakistan army mobility by blowing up bridges/culverts, fuel depots, trains and river crafts.
- The strategic objective was to make the Pakistanis spread their forces inside the province, so attacks could be made on isolated Pakistani detachments.
Bangladesh was divided into eleven sectors in July,[77] each with a commander chosen from defected officers of the Pakistani army who joined the Mukti Bahini to conduct guerrilla operations and train fighters. Most of their training camps were situated near the border area and were operated with assistance from India. The 10th Sector was directly placed under the Commander in Chief (C-in-C) General M. A. G. Osmani and included the Naval Commandos and C-in-C's special force.[78] Three brigades (11 Battalions) were raised for conventional warfare; a large guerrilla force (estimated at 100,000) was trained.[79]
Three brigades (8 infantry battalions and 3 artillery batteries) were put into action between July – September.[80] During June – July, Mukti Bahini had regrouped across the border with Indian aid through Operation Jackpot and began sending 2000 – 5000 guerrillas across the border,[81] the so-called Moonsoon Offensive, which for various reasons (lack of proper training, supply shortage, lack of a proper support network inside Bangladesh etc.) failed to achieve its objectives.[82][83][84] Bengali regular forces also attacked BOPs inMymensingh, Comilla and Sylhet, but the results were mixed. Pakistani authorities concluded that they had successfully contained the Monsoon Offensive, which proved a near-accurate observation.[85][86]
Guerrilla operations, which slackened during the training phase, picked up after August. Economic and military targets in Dhaka were attacked. The major success story was Operation Jackpot, in which naval commandos mined and blew up berthed ships in Chittagong,Mongla, Narayanganj and Chandpur on 15 August 1971.[87][88]
October – December[edit]
See also: Mitro Bahini Order of Battle December 1971, Pakistan Army Order of Battle December 1971, Evolution of Pakistan Eastern Command plan, and Operation JackpotBangladesh conventional forces attacked border outposts. Kamalpur, Belonia and the Battle of Boyra are a few examples. 90 out of 370 BOPs fell to Bengali forces. Guerrilla attacks intensified, as did Pakistani and Razakar reprisals on civilian populations. Pakistani forces were reinforced by eight battalions from West Pakistan. The Bangladeshi independence fighters even managed to temporarily capture airstrips at Lalmonirhat and Shalutikar.[89] Both of these were used for flying in supplies and arms from India. Pakistan sent another 5 battalions from West Pakistan as reinforcements.
Indian involvement[edit]
See also: Indo-Pakistani War of 1971Major battles
Wary of the growing involvement of India, the Pakistan Air Force(PAF) launched a pre-emptive strike on Indian Air Force bases on 3 December 1971. The attack was modelled on the Israeli Air Force'sOperation Focus during the Six-Day War, and intended to neutralise the Indian Air Force planes on the ground. The strike was seen by India as an open act of unprovoked aggression. This marked the official start of the Indo-Pakistani War.
As a response to the attack, both India and Pakistan formally acknowledged the "existence of a state of war between the two countries", even though neither government had formally issued a Declaration of War.[90]
Three Indian corps were involved in the liberation of East Pakistan. They were supported by nearly three brigades of Mukti Bahini fighting alongside them, and many more fighting irregularly. This was far superior to the Pakistani army of three divisions.[91] The Indians quickly overran the country, selectively engaging or bypassing heavily defended strongholds. Pakistani forces were unable to effectively counter the Indian attack, as they had been deployed in small units around the border to counter guerrilla attacks by the Mukti Bahini.[92]Unable to defend Dhaka, the Pakistanis surrendered on 16 December 1971.
[edit]
The Indian Air Force carried out several sorties against Pakistan, and within a week, IAF aircraft dominated the skies of East Pakistan. It achieved near-total air supremacy by the end of the first week as the entire Pakistani air contingent in the east, PAF No.14 Squadron, was grounded because of Indian and Bangladesh airstrikes at Tejgaon, Kurmitolla, Lal Munir Hat and Shamsher Nagar. Sea Hawksfrom INS Vikrant also struck Chittagong, Barisal and Cox's Bazar, destroying the eastern wing of the Pakistan Navy and effectively blockading the East Pakistan ports, thereby cutting off any escape routes for the stranded Pakistani soldiers. The nascent Bangladesh Navy (comprising officers and sailors who defected from the Pakistani Navy) aided the Indians in the marine warfare, carrying out attacks, most notably Operation Jackpot.[citation needed]
Surrender and aftermath[edit]
On 16 December 1971, Lt. Gen A. A. K. Niazi, CO of Pakistan Army forces located in East Pakistan signed the Instrument of Surrender. At the time of surrender only a few countries had provided diplomatic recognition to the new nation. Over 93,000 Pakistani troops surrendered to the Indian forces, making it the largest surrender since World War II.[6][93] Bangladesh sought admission in the UN with most voting in its favour, but China vetoed this as Pakistan was its key ally.[94] The United States, also a key ally of Pakistan, was one of the last nations to accord Bangladesh recognition.[95] To ensure a smooth transition, in 1972 the Simla Agreement was signed between India and Pakistan. The treaty ensured that Pakistan recognised the independence of Bangladesh in exchange for the return of the Pakistani PoWs. India treated all the PoWs in strict accordance with the Geneva Convention, rule 1925.[96] It released more than 93,000 Pakistani PoWs in five months.[6] Further, as a gesture of goodwill, nearly 200 soldiers who were sought for war crimes by Bengalis were also pardoned by India. The accord also gave back more than 13,000 km2 (5,019 sq mi) of land that Indian troops had seized in West Pakistan during the war, though India retained a few strategic areas;[97] most notably Kargil (which would in turn again be the focal point for a warbetween the two nations in 1999). This was done as a measure of promoting "lasting peace" and was acknowledged by many observers as a sign of maturity by India. However, some in India[who?] felt that the treaty had been too lenient to Bhutto, who had pleaded for leniency, arguing that the fragile democracy in Pakistan would crumble if the accord was perceived as being overly harsh by Pakistanis.
Reaction in West Pakistan to the war[edit]
Reaction to the defeat and dismemberment of half the nation was a shocking loss to top military and civilians alike. No one had expected that they would lose the formal war in under a fortnight, and there was also unsettlement over what was perceived as a meek surrender of the army in East Pakistan. Yahya Khan's dictatorship collapsed and gave way to Bhutto, who took the opportunity to rise to power. General Niazi, who surrendered along with 93,000 troops, was viewed with suspicion and contempt upon his return to Pakistan. He was shunned and branded a traitor. The war also exposed the shortcomings of Pakistan's declared strategic doctrine that the "defence of East Pakistan lay in West Pakistan".[98][99][100] Pakistan also failed to gather international support, and found itself fighting a lone battle with only the USA providing any external help. This further embittered the Pakistanis, who had faced the worst military defeat of an army in decades. The debacle immediately prompted an enquiry headed by Justice Hamoodur Rahman.
Atrocities[edit]
Main articles: 1971 Bangladesh genocide, 1971 killing of Bengali intellectuals, and Rape during the Bangladesh Liberation WarDuring the war there were widespread killings and other atrocities – including the displacement of civilians in Bangladesh (East Pakistan at the time) and widespread violations of human rights – carried out by the Pakistan Army with support from political and religious militias, beginning with the start of Operation Searchlight on 25 March 1971. Bangladeshi authorities claimed that three million people were killed,[53] while the Hamoodur Rahman Commission, an official Pakistan Government investigation, put the figure at 26,000 civilian casualties.[101] The international media and reference books in English by authors and genocide scholars such as Samuel Totten have also published figures of up to 3,000,000 for Bangladesh as a whole,[102] although independent researchers put the toll at 300,000 to 500,000.[8] A further eight to ten million people fled the country to seek safety in India.[103]
A 2008 British Medical Journal study by Ziad Obermeyer, Christopher J. L. Murray, and Emmanuela Gakidou estimated that up to 269,000 civilians died as a result of the conflict; the authors note that this is far higher than a previous estimate of 58,000 from Uppsala University and the Peace Research Institute, Oslo.[104] According to Serajur Rahman, the official Bangladeshi estimate of "3 lakhs" (300,000, written "3,00,000") was wrongly translated into English as 3 million.[105]
A large section of the intellectual community of Bangladesh were murdered, mostly by the Al-Shams and Al-Badr forces,[106] at the instruction of the Pakistani Army.[107] Just two days before the surrender, on 14 December 1971, Pakistan Army and Razakar militia (local collaborators) picked up at least 100 physicians, professors, writers and engineers in Dhaka, and murdered them, leaving the dead bodies in a mass grave.[108]There are many mass graves in Bangladesh, with an increasing number discovered throughout the proceeding years (such as one in an old well near a mosque in Dhaka, located in the non-Bengali region of the city, which was discovered in August 1999).[109] The first night of war on Bengalis, which is documented in telegrams from the American Consulate in Dhaka to the United States State Department, saw indiscriminate killings of students of Dhaka University and other civilians.[110]Numerous women were tortured, raped and killed during the war; the exact numbers are not known and are a subject of debate. Bangladeshi sources cite a figure of 200,000 women raped, giving birth to thousands of war babies.[111][112][113] The Pakistan Army also kept numerous Bengali women as sex-slaves inside the Dhaka Cantonment. Most of the girls were captured fromDhaka University and private homes.[114] There was significant sectarian violence not only perpetrated and encouraged by the Pakistani army,[115] but also by Bengali nationalists against non-Bengali minorities, especially Biharis.[116]
On 16 December 2002, the George Washington University's National Security Archive published a collection of declassified documents, consisting mostly of communications between US embassy officials and United States Information Service centres in Dhaka and India, and officials in Washington DC.[117] These documents show that US officials working in diplomatic institutions within Bangladesh used the terms "selective genocide"[118] and "genocide" (see The Blood Telegram) for information on events they had knowledge of at the time). Genocide is the term that is still used to describe the event in almost every major publication and newspaper in Bangladesh,[119][120] although elsewhere, particularly in Pakistan, the actual death toll, motives, extent, and destructive impact of the actions of the Pakistani forces are disputed.
Aftermath[edit]
![[icon]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg/20px-Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg.png)
This section requires expansion.(December 2013) In the second decade of the 21st century a spate of death sentences were handed out leading to opposition protests.
Foreign reaction[edit]
United Nations[edit]
Though the United Nations condemned the human rights violations during and following Operation Searchlight, it failed to defuse the situation politically before the start of the war.
Following Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's declaration of independence in March 1971, India undertook a world-wide campaign to drum up political, democratic and humanitarian support for the people of Bangladesh for their liberation struggle. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi toured a large number of countries in a bid to create awareness of the Pakistani atrocities against Bengalis. This effort was to prove vital later during the war, in framing the world's context of the war and to justify military action by India.[121] Also, following Pakistan's defeat, it ensured prompt recognition of the newly independent state of Bangladesh.
Following India's entry into the war, Pakistan, fearing certain defeat, made urgent appeals to the United Nations to intervene and force India to agree to a cease fire. The UN Security Council assembled on 4 December 1971 to discuss the hostilities in South Asia. After lengthy discussions on 7 December, the United States made a resolution for "immediate cease-fire and withdrawal of troops". While supported by the majority, the USSR vetoed the resolution twice. In light of the Pakistani atrocities against Bengalis, the United Kingdom and France abstained on the resolution.[90][122]
On 12 December, with Pakistan facing imminent defeat, the United States requested that the Security Council be reconvened. Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was rushed to New York City to make the case for a resolution on the cease fire. The council continued deliberations for four days. By the time proposals were finalised, Pakistan's forces in the East had surrendered and the war had ended, making the measures merely academic. Bhutto, frustrated by the failure of the resolution and the inaction of the United Nations, ripped up his speech and left the council.[122]
Most UN member nations were quick to recognise Bangladesh within months of its independence.[121]
Bhutan[edit]
As the Bangladesh Liberation War approached the defeat of the Pakistan Army, Bhutan became the first country in the world to recognize the newly independent state on 6 December 1971. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the first President of Bangladesh visited Bhutan to attend the coronation of Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the fourth King of Bhutan in June, 1974.[123]
USA and USSR[edit]
The United States supported Pakistan[124] both politically and materially. US President Richard Nixon denied getting involved in the situation, saying that it was an internal matter of Pakistan, but when Pakistan's defeat seemed certain, Nixon sent the aircraft carrierUSS Enterprise to the Bay of Bengal,[125] a move deemed by the Indians as a nuclear threat. Enterprise arrived on station on 11 December 1971. On 6 and 13 December, the Soviet Navy dispatched two groups of ships, armed with nuclear missiles, fromVladivostok; they trailed US Task Force 74 in the Indian Ocean from 18 December until 7 January 1972.[126]
Nixon and Henry Kissinger feared Soviet expansion into South and Southeast Asia. Pakistan was a close ally of the People's Republic of China, with whom Nixon had been negotiating a rapprochement and which he intended to visit in February 1972. Nixon feared that an Indian invasion of West Pakistan would mean total Soviet domination of the region, and that it would seriously undermine the global position of the United States and the regional position of America's new tacit ally, China. To demonstrate to China the bona fidesof the United States as an ally, and in direct violation of the US Congress-imposed sanctions on Pakistan, Nixon sent military supplies to Pakistan and routed them through Jordan and Iran,[127] while also encouraging China to increase its arms supplies to Pakistan. The Nixon administration also ignored reports it received of the genocidal activities of the Pakistani Army in East Pakistan, most notably the Blood telegram.
The Soviet Union supported Bangladesh and Indian armies, as well as the Mukti Bahiniduring the war, recognising that the independence of Bangladesh would weaken the position of its rivals – the United States and China. It gave assurances to India that if a confrontation with the United States or China developed, the USSR would take countermeasures. This was enshrined in the Indo-Soviet friendship treaty signed in August 1971. The Soviets also sent a nuclear submarine to ward off the threat posed by USS Enterprise in the Indian Ocean.
At the end of the war, the Warsaw Pact countries were among the first to recognise Bangladesh. The Soviet Union accorded recognition to Bangladesh on 25 January 1972.[128] The United States delayed recognition for some months, before according it on 8 April 1972.[129]
China[edit]
As a long-standing ally of Pakistan, the People's Republic of China reacted with alarm to the evolving situation in East Pakistan and the prospect of India invading West Pakistan and Pakistani-controlled Kashmir. Believing that just such an Indian attack was imminent, Nixon encouraged China to mobilise its armed forces along its border with India to discourage it. The Chinese did not, however, respond to this encouragement, because unlike the 1962 Sino-Indian War when India was caught entirely unaware, this time the Indian Army was prepared and had deployed eight mountain divisions to the Sino-Indian border to guard against such an eventuality.[90] China instead threw its weight behind demands for an immediate ceasefire.
When Bangladesh applied for membership to the United Nations in 1972, China vetoed their application[130] because two United Nations resolutions regarding the repatriation of Pakistani prisoners of war and civilians had not yet been implemented.[131] China was also among the last countries to recognise independent Bangladesh, refusing to do so until 31 August 1975.[121][130]
See also[edit]
- Timeline of the Bangladesh War
- Artistic depictions of Bangladesh Liberation War
- Mukti Bahini
- Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
- Movement demanding trial of war criminals (Bangladesh)
- Liberation War Museum
- Rape during the Bangladesh Liberation War
- Recipients of Bangladeshi military awards in 1971
- Jahanara Imam
- Shafi Imam Rumi
- The Concert for Bangladesh
Footnotes[edit]
- ^ "Gen. Tikka Khan, 87; 'Butcher of Bengal' Led Pakistani Army". Los Angeles Times. 30 March 2002.
- ^ a b c India – Pakistan War, 1971; Introduction – Tom Cooper, Khan Syed Shaiz Ali
- ^ Pakistan & the Karakoram Highway By Owen Bennett-Jones, Lindsay Brown, John Mock, Sarina Singh, Pg 30
- ^ p. 442 Indian Army after Independence by KC Pravel: Lancer 1987 [ISBN 81-7062-014-7]
- ^ a b Figures from The Fall of Dacca by Jagjit Singh Aurora inThe Illustrated Weekly of India dated 23 December 1973 quoted in Indian Army after Independence by KC Pravel: Lancer 1987 [ISBN 81-7062-014-7]
- ^ a b c "54 Indian PoWs of 1971 war still in Pakistan". Daily Times. 19 January 2005. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
- ^ Figure from Pakistani Prisoners of War in India by Col S.P. Salunke p.10 quoted in Indian Army after Independence by KC Pravel: Lancer 1987 (ISBN 81-7062-014-7)
- ^ a b "Bangladesh Islamist leader Ghulam Azam charged". BBC. 13 May 2012. Retrieved 13 May 2012.
- ^ "Bangladesh sets up war crimes court – Central & South Asia". Al Jazeera. 25 March 2010. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
- ^ Encyclopaedia of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, Page 235
- ^ Historical Dictionary of Bangladesh, Page 289
- ^ Moss, Peter (2005). Secondary Social Studies For Pakistan. Karachi: Oxford University Press. p. 93. ISBN 9780195977042. Retrieved June 10, 2013.
- ^ Library of Congress
- ^ en, Samuel; Paul Robert Bartrop, Steven L. Jacobs. Dictionary of Genocide: A-L. Volume 1: Greenwood. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-313-32967-8.
- ^ "Leading News Resource of Pakistan". Daily Times. 2010-05-17. Retrieved 2013-07-18.
- ^ "New Year 2013". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2013-07-18.
- ^ Bangladesh Genocide Archive | Collaborators and War Criminals. Genocidebangladesh.org. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
- ^ New York Times, 30 July 1971
- ^ The Wall Street Jornal, 27 July 1971.
- ^ Daily Sangram, 15 September 1971
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ "Britain Proposes Indian Partition". Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada: The Leader-Post. BUP. 2 June 1947.
- ^ Grover, Preston (8 June 1947). "India Partition Will Present Many Problems". Sarasota, Florida, USA: Herald-Tribune, via Google News. Associated Press.
- ^ "Problems of Partition". The Sydney Morning Herald(Sydney, Australia). 14 June 1947.
- ^ "''Genocide in Bangladesh, 1971.'' Gendercide Watch". Gendercide.org. Archived from the original on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
- ^ "''Emerging Discontent, 1966–70.'' Country Studies Bangladesh". Countrystudies.us. Archived from the original on 22 June 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
- ^ Anatomy of Violence: Analysis of Civil War in East Pakistan in 1971: Military Action: Operation Searchlight Bose S Economic and Political Weekly Special Articles, 8 October 2005[dead link]
- ^ The Pakistani Slaughter That Nixon Ignored, Syndicated Column by Sydney Schanberg, The New York Times, 3 May 1994
- ^ a b "Civil War Rocks East Pakistan". Daytona Beach, Florida, USA: Daytona Beach Morning Journal, via Google News. Associated Press. 27 March 1971.
- ^ a b Crisis in South Asia – A report by Senator Edward Kennedy to the Subcommittee investigating the Problem of Refugees and Their Settlement, Submitted to U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, 1 November 1971, U.S. Govt. Press.pp6-7
- ^ "''India and Pakistan: Over the Edge.'' TIME 13 December 1971 Vol. 98 No. 24". Time. 13 December 1971. Archivedfrom the original on 23 May 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
- ^ Al Helal, Bashir, Language Movement, Banglapedia
- ^ a b "Language Movement" (PHP). Banglapedia – The National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh. Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Archived from the original on 1 March 2007. Retrieved 6 February 2007.
- ^ "International Mother Language Day – Background and Adoption of the Resolution". Government of Bangladesh. Archived from the original on 20 May 2007. Retrieved 21 June 2007.
- ^ Rahman, Tariq (September 1997). "Language and Ethnicity in Pakistan". Asian Survey 37 (9): 833–839.doi:10.1525/as.1997.37.9.01p02786. ISSN 0004-4687.JSTOR 2645700.
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- ^ a b c Oldenburg, Philip (August 1985). "'A Place Insufficiently Imagined': Language, Belief, and the Pakistan Crisis of 1971".The Journal of Asian Studies 44 (4): 711–733.doi:10.2307/2056443. ISSN 0021-9118.JSTOR 2056443.
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- ^ Rounaq Jahan (1972). Pakistan: Failure in National Integration. Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-03625-6.Pg 166–167
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- ^ Schanberg, Sydney (22 November 1970). "Yahya Condedes 'Slips' In Relief". The New York Times.
- ^ Staff writer (23 November 1970). "East Pakistani Leaders Assail Yahya on Cyclone Relief". The New York Times. Reuters.
- ^ Staff writer (18 November 1970). "Copter Shortage Balks Cyclone Aid". The New York Times.
- ^ Durdin, Tillman (11 March 1971). "Pakistanis Crisis Virtually Halts Rehabilitation Work in Cyclone Region". The New York Times.
- ^ Olson, Richard (21 February 2005). "A Critical Juncture Analysis, 1964–2003" (PDF). USAID. Archived from the original on 14 April 2007. Retrieved 15 April 2007.[dead link]
- ^ Sarmila Bose Anatomy of Violence: Analysis of Civil War in East Pakistan in 1971: Military Action: Operation Searchlight[dead link] Economic and Political Weekly Special Articles, 8 October 2005
- ^ Salik, Siddiq, Witness To Surrender, pp 63, 228–9, id = ISBN 984-05-1373-7
- ^ From Deterrence and Coercive Diplomacy to War – The 1971 Crisis in South Asia. Asif Siddiqui, Journal of International and Area Studies Vol.4 No.1, 1997. 12. pp 73–92.
- ^ a b White, Matthew, Death Tolls for the Major Wars and Atrocities of the Twentieth Century
- ^ Zunaid Kazi. "History : The Bangali Genocide, 1971". Virtual Bangladesh. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
- ^ Rummel, Rudolph. "Chapter 8: Statistics of Pakistan's Democide Estimates, Calculations, And Sources". Statistics of Democide: Genocide and Mass Murder since 1900. p. 544.ISBN 978-3-8258-4010-5. ""...They also planned to indiscriminately murder hundreds of thousands of its Hindus and drive the rest into India. ... This despicable and cutthroat plan was outright genocide'."
- ^ Debasish Roy Chowdhury (23 June 2005). "Indians are bastards anyway". Asia Times Online.
- ^ Malik, Amita (1972). The Year of the Vulture. New Delhi: Orient Longmans. pp. 79–83. ISBN 0-8046-8817-6.
- ^ "Bangladesh war: The article that changed history", BBC, 16 December 2011
- ^ "The Hindu genocide that Hindus and the world forgot".India Tribune. Retrieved 7 June 2013.
- ^ "Encyclopædia Britannica – Agha Mohammad Yahya Khan".Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
- ^ HISTORY OF FREEDOM MOVEMENT IN BANGLADESH, 1943–1973: SOME INVOLVEMENT WRITTEN BY JYOTI SEN GUPTA, NAYA PROKASH, 206, BIDHAN SARANI, CALCUTTA-6, FIRST EDITION, 1974, CHAPTER-15, PAGE-325 and 326. Books.google.com.bd. 1974. Retrieved 18 February 2013.
- ^ HISTORY OF FREEDOM MOVEMENT IN BANGLADESH, 1943–1973: SOME INVOLVEMENT WRITTEN BY JYOTI SEN GUPTA, NAYA PROKASH, 206, BIDHAN SARANI, CALCUTTA-6, FIRST EDITION, 1974, CHAPTER-15, PAGE-325 and 326. Books.google.com.bd. 1974. Retrieved 18 February 2013.
- ^ HISTORY OF FREEDOM MOVEMENT IN BANGLADESH, 1943–1973: SOME INVOLVEMENT WRITTEN BY JYOTI SEN GUPTA, NAYA PROKASH, 206, BIDHAN SARANI, CALCUTTA-6, FIRST EDITION, 1974, CHAPTER-15, PAGE-325 and 326. Books.google.com.bd. 1974. Retrieved 18 February 2013.
- ^ Virtual Bangladesh
- ^ Maj. Gen. Fazal Muqeem Khan – Pakistan's Crisis in Leadership; National Book Foundation, Islamabad, 1973; page 79
- ^ Brigadier Zahir Alam Khan – THE WAY IT WAS; Dynavis Pvt.Ltd, Karachi, September 1998
- ^ Lt. Gen. Kamal Matinuddin – Tragedy of Errors: East Pakistan Crisis, 1968–1971; Wajidalis, Lahore, 1994; page 255
- ^ "THE 1971 INDO-PAK WAR: A SOLDIER'S NARRATIVE"
- ^ M1 India, Pakistan, and the United States: Breaking with the Past By Shirin R. Tahir-Kheli ISBN 0-87609-199-0, 1997, Council on Foreign Relations. pp 37
- ^ Pakistan Defence Journal, 1977, Vol 2, pp. 2–3
- ^ "Bangladesh". State.gov. 24 May 2010. Archived from the original on 22 June 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
- ^ Jacob, Lt. Gen. JFR, Surrender at Dacca, pp90 – pp91
- ^ Jacob, Lt. Gen. JFR, Surrender at Dacca, pp42 – pp44, pp90 – pp91
- ^ Hassan, Moyeedul, Muldhara' 71, pp45 – pp46
- ^ Islam, Major Rafiqul, A Tale of Millions, pp. 227, 235
- ^ Shafiullah, Maj. Gen. K.M., Bangladesh at War, pp161 – pp163
- ^ Islam, Major Rafiqul, A Tale of Millions, pp. 226–231
- ^ Bangladesh Liberation Armed Force, Liberation War Museum, Bangladesh.
- ^ Raja, Dewan Mohammad Tasawwar, O GENERAL MY GENERAL (Life and Works of General M. A. G. Osmani), pp. 35–109, ISBN 978-984-8866-18-4
- ^ Jacob, Lt. Gen. JFR, Surrender at Dacca, pp44
- ^ Hassan, Moyeedul, Muldhara 71, pp 44
- ^ Ali, Maj. Gen. Rao Farman, How Pakistan Got Divided, pp 100
- ^ Hassan, Moyeedul, Muldhara 71, pp 64 – 65
- ^ Khan, Maj. Gen. Fazal Mukeem, Pakistan's Crisis in Leadership, pp125
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- ^ Niazi, Lt. Gen. A.A.K, The Betrayal of East Pakistan, p 96
- ^ Roy, Mihir, K (1995). War in the Indian Ocean. 56, Gautaum Nagar, New-Delhi, 110049, India: Lancer Publisher & Distributor. p. 154. ISBN 978-1-897829-11-0.
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|isbn=value (help). - ^ "India – Pakistan War, 1971; Introduction By Tom Cooper, with Khan Syed Shaiz Ali". Acig.org. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
- ^ a b c "India and Pakistan: Over the Edge". Time. 13 December 1971. Retrieved 17 August 2011.
- ^ "Bangladesh: Out of War, a Nation Is Born". Time. 20 December 1971. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
- ^ Indian Army after Independence by Maj KC Praval 1993 Lancer, p. 317 ISBN 1-897829-45-0
- ^ "The 1971 war". BBC News. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
- ^ Section 9. Situation in the Indian Subcontinent, 2. Bangladesh's international position – Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
- ^ Guess who's coming to dinner Naeem Bangali
- ^ "Bangladesh: Unfinished Justice for the crimes of 1971 – South Asia Citizens Web". Sacw.net. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
- ^ "The Simla Agreement 1972 – Story of Pakistan". Storyofpakistan.com. 1 June 2003. Archived from the original on 14 June 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
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- ^ "General Niazi's Failure in High Command". Ghazali.net. 21 August 2000. Retrieved 18 February 2013.
- ^ Hamoodur Rahman Commission Report, chapter 2, paragraph 33
- ^ Totten, Samuel; Paul Robert Bartrop, Steven L. Jacobs.Dictionary of Genocide: A-L. Volume 1: Greenwood. p. 34.ISBN 978-0-313-32967-8.
- ^ Rummel, Rudolph J., "Statistics of Democide: Genocide and Mass Murder Since 1900", ISBN 3-8258-4010-7, Chapter 8,Table 8.2 Pakistan Genocide in Bangladesh Estimates, Sources, and Calculations: lowest estimate two million claimed by Pakistan (reported by Aziz, Qutubuddin. Blood and tears Karachi: United Press of Pakistan, 1974. pp. 74,226), all the other sources used by Rummel suggest a figure of between 8 and 10 million with one (Johnson, B. L. C. Bangladesh. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1975. pp. 73,75) that "could have been" 12 million.
- ^ Obermeyer, Ziad, et al., "Fifty years of violent war deaths from Vietnam to Bosnia: analysis of data from the world health survey programme", British Medical Jornal, June 2008.
- ^ Rahman, Serajur, "Mujib's confusion on Bangladeshi deaths", Letters, The Guardian, May 23, 2011.
- ^ Many of the eyewitness accounts of relations that were picked up by "Al Badr" forces describe them as Bengali men. The only survivor of the Rayerbazar killings describes the captors and killers of Bengali professionals as fellow Bengalis. See 57 Dilawar Hossain, account reproduced in 'Ekattorer Ghatok-dalalera ke Kothay' (Muktijuddha Chetona Bikash Kendro, Dhaka, 1989)
- ^ Asadullah Khan The loss continues to haunt us in The Daily Star 14 December 2005
- ^ "125 Slain in Dacca Area, Believed Elite of Bengal". The New York Times (New York, NY, USA). 19 December 1971. p. 1. Retrieved 4 January 2008. "At least 125 persons, believed to be physicians, professors, writers and teachers were found murdered today in a field outside Dacca. All the victims' hands were tied behind their backs and they had been bayoneted, garroted or shot. They were among an estimated 300 Bengali intellectuals who had been seized by West Pakistani soldiers and locally recruited supporters."
- ^ DPA report Mass grave found in Bangladesh in The Chandigarh Tribune 8 August 1999
- ^ Sajit Gandhi The Tilt: The U.S. and the South Asian Crisis of 1971 National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 79 16 December 2002
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- ^ Gandhi, Sajit, ed. (16 December 2002), The Tilt: The U.S. and the South Asian Crisis of 1971: National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 79
- ^ U.S. Consulate in Dacca (27 March 1971), Selective genocide, Cable (PDF)
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References[edit]
- Pierre Stephen and Robert Payne: Massacre, Macmillan, New York, (1973). ISBN 0-02-595240-4
- Christopher Hitchens "The Trials of Henry Kissinger", Verso (2001). ISBN 1-85984-631-9
- Library of Congress Country Studies
Further reading[edit]
- Ayoob, Mohammed and Subrahmanyam, K., The Liberation War, S. Chand and Co. pvt Ltd. New Delhi, 1972.
- Bhargava, G.S., Crush India or Pakistan's Death Wish, ISSD, New Delhi, 1972.
- Bhattacharyya, S. K., Genocide in East Pakistan/Bangladesh: A Horror Story, A. Ghosh Publishers, 1988.
- Brownmiller, Susan: Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape, Ballantine Books, 1993.
- Choudhury, G.W., "Bangladesh: Why It Happened." International Affairs. (1973). 48(2): 242–249.
- Choudhury, G.W., The Last Days of United Pakistan, Oxford University Press, 1994.
- Govt. of Bangladesh, Documents of the war of Independence, Vol 01-16, Ministry of Information.
- Kanjilal, Kalidas, The Perishing Humanity, Sahitya Loke, Calcutta, 1976
- Johnson, Rob, 'A Region in Turmoil' (New York and London, 2005)
- Malik, Amita, The Year of the Vulture, Orient Longmans, New Delhi, 1972.
- Mascarenhas, Anthony, The Rape of Bangla Desh, Vikas Publications, 1972.
- Matinuddin, General Kamal, Tragedy of Errors: East Pakistan Crisis, 1968–1971, Wajidalis, Lahore, Pakistan, 1994.
- Mookherjee, Nayanika, A Lot of History: Sexual Violence, Public Memories and the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971, D. Phil thesis in Social Anthropology, SOAS, University of London, 2002.
- National Security Archive, The Tilt: the U.S. and the South Asian Crisis of 1971
- Quereshi, Major General Hakeem Arshad, The 1971 Indo-Pak War, A Soldiers Narrative, Oxford University Press, 2002.
- Rummel, R.J., Death By Government, Transaction Publishers, 1997.
- Salik, Siddiq, Witness to Surrender, Oxford University Press, Karachi, Pakistan, 1977.
- Sisson, Richard & Rose, Leo, War and secession: Pakistan, India, and the creation of Bangladesh, University of California Press (Berkeley), 1990.
- Totten, Samuel et al., eds., Century of Genocide: Eyewitness Accounts and Critical Views, Garland Reference Library, 1997
- US Department of State Office of the Historian, Foreign Relations of the United States: Nixon-Ford Administrations, vol. E-7, Documents on South Asia 1969–1972[dead link]
- Zaheer, Hasan: The separation of East Pakistan: The rise and realisation of Bengali Muslim nationalism, Oxford University Press, 1994.
- Raja, Dewan Mohammad Tasawwar (2010). O GENERAL MY GENERAL (Life and Works of General M. A. G. Osmani). The Osmani Memorial Trust, Dhaka, Bangladesh. ISBN 978-984-8866-18-4.
External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bangladesh Liberation War. - Banglapedia article on the Liberation war of Bangladesh
- 1971 Bangladesh Genocide Archive
- Video Streaming of 5 Liberation war documentaries[dead link]
- Video, audio footage, news reports, pictures and resources from Mukto-mona
- Picture Gallery of the Language Movement 1952 & the Independence War 1971 of Bangladesh[dead link]
- Bangladesh Liberation War. Mujibnagar. Government Documents 1971[dead link]
- Torture in Bangladesh 1971–2004 (PDF)[dead link]
- Eyewitness Accounts: Genocide in Bangladesh
- Genocide 1971[dead link]
- The women of 1971. Tales of abuse and rape by the Pakistan Army.
- Mathematics of a Massacre, Abul Kashem
- The complete Hamoodur Rahman Commission Report
- 1971 Massacre in Bangladesh and the Fallacy in the Hamoodur Rahman Commission Report, Dr. M.A. Hasan[dead link]
- Women of Pakistan Apologize for War Crimes, 1996
- Pakistan Army not involved
- Sheikh Mujib wanted a confederation: US papers, by Anwar Iqbal, Dawn, 7 July 2005[dead link]
- Page containing copies of the surrender documents
- A website dedicated to Liberation war of Bangladesh
- Video clip of the surrender by Pakistan[dead link]
- Bangladesh Liberation War Picture Gallery Graphic images, viewer discretion advised
[show] Liberation of Bangladesh[show] [show] [show] [show] Categories:- Secession in Pakistan
- Bangladesh Liberation War
- Civil wars involving the states and peoples of Asia
- Civil wars post-1945
- History of Bangladesh
- History of Pakistan
- Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
- War crimes in Bangladesh
- Surrenders
- Wars involving Bangladesh
- 1971 in India
- Military history of Bangladesh
- Torture in Bangladesh
'দায়মোচনের শুভ সূচনা' - bdnews24.com
bangla.bdnews24.com
আব্দুল কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসির রায় কার্যকর হওয়ার মধ্য দিয়ে জাতির কলঙ্ক মোচন শুরু হয়েছে বলে মন্তব্য করেছেন ১৪ দল ও বাম নেতারা।
Share · December 13 at 3:21pm
Bangladesh could be set for prolonged unrest
Violence has erupted after the execution of an opposition figure and analysts worry January's vote could be impacted.
Syed Tashfin Chowdhury Last updated: 14 Dec 2013 14:23
Dhaka, Bangladesh - Violence continues in Bangladesh following the execution of a prominent opposition figure, and local business owners and residents are worried the turmoil could spin out of control.
Friday was one of the worst days for local merchants in years, said Mohammad Mozammel, an owner of a store that sells essential products at Azampur Railway Super Market.
"We had the lowest number of customers as people did not want to come out of their houses after political violence erupted across the country, following Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Assistant Secretary General Abdul Quader Mollah's execution last night," he said.
"Policemen armed with shotguns and other weapons rushed into our markets [on Friday night]. They asked us to close our shops while they prepared to clash with the miscreants in the nearby market."
Shobuj, a salesman of another store, said: "We have been facing losses ever since October 25 when the opposition began calling blockades and strikes during the weekdays. But the crisis is the worst now."
Similar angst is being felt by other Bangladeshis as well, as the violence that has erupted since Thursday night has already claimed at least 11 lives and led to hundreds of injuries. More than 150 vehicles were vandalised and torched across the country, according to local media.
While law enforcement officials have been on "high alert", security analysts fear that the violence may intensify, especially prior to national parliamentary elections set for January 5. The 18-party opposition, led by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, has already boycotted the elections as their demands were not met.
There is a fear that the election may become one-sided if a viable solution to the present political impasse is not decided upon soon.
Historical problems
Abdul Quader Mollah was found guilty on February 5, this year, for killing a student, a family of 11 members and for collaborating with Pakistani forces to kill 369 others in 1971 during Bangladesh's war of independence.
Over the past four decades, Bangladeshi authorities have maintained that during the nine-month long bloody war, the Pakistani army and their local collaborators killed at least three million people and raped more than 200,000 women in then-East Pakistan (now-Bangladesh).
Jamaat-e-Islami, Mollah's political party, was against the formation of Bangladesh at the time.
We are gradually moving towards a situation where there may soon be selective killings as can be heard of in Israel and Afghanistan.
M Shahiduzzaman, security analyst
Although Mollah was sentenced to life in prison for his crimes, the Supreme Court in Bangladesh changed that to a death sentence in September.
After his review appeal was ruled out on Thursday by an Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, Quader Mollah was hanged at the Dhaka Central Jail on Thursday. The media was not informed of the execution. His body was later buried at his village home in Faridpur.
A few minutes after the execution was reported by the local media, reports of clashes between Jamaat supporters and police poured in from across the country.
A Jamaat leader in Laxmipur and three Shibir activists were killed during clashes between police and opposition activists on Saturday, local media reported.
An activist of Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Jamaat, died during a clash with police in Comilla while a ruling party leader was killed allegedly by Jamaat activists in Satkhira.
A number of train stations were attacked on the same night. Opposition activists hurled a petrol bomb at the Joydebpur railway junction on Friday morning.
A Juba League activist, the youth wing of the ruling party, was killed in Satkhira while a rickshaw puller was killed during a clash between police and Jamaat activists in Noakhali district on Friday. In Pirojpur, a BNP activist was shot dead by the police while a Jamaat activist was run over by a truck when he tried to set the vehicle on fire in Jessore, reported bdnews24.com.
Two more were reported dead in Noakhali and Khulna on Friday evening. A Jamaat leader in Laxmipur and three more during opposition and police clashes in Noakhali in clashes that continued through Saturday.
'Is this a curse?'
In Dhaka, the capital, violence began Friday afternoon in Fakirerpul, Rampura, Arambagh, Motijheel and Paltan areas. Photographer Abdullah Apu was in the Arambagh area when a procession was brought out allegedly by Jamaat activists. "A group of journalists were following the procession. When it came near the AGB Colony, they exploded homemade bombs. Within a few minutes, the activists dispersed and set fire to at least 15 vehicles," he said.
Police said they opened fire to control the violence. Shanto Islam, 10, was shot by a stray bullet. Shanto has been unconscious ever since he was rushed to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital. The boy was on his way to his aunt's for lunch from his father's street-side tea stall in Arambagh.
Sobhan Mia, Shanto's father, was worried. "This is a curse for our family," he said. "We can hardly support ourselves with our daily income. How can we bear the cost of his treatment now?" he asked.
A senior official of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police told Al Jazeera that security forces have been on "high alert" ever since Tuesday when the execution was originally scheduled. "We were prepared for such violence as the execution was imminent. There has been less number of violence in Dhaka today than what we were dreading," he said.
"Police are responsible for safeguarding the lives and interests of the common people. That is exactly what they will do during these times," Inspector General of Police Hasan Mahmud Khandaker told Al Jazeera.
Analysts are dreading that the worst is yet to come.
Abbas Faiz, Amnesty International's Bangladesh researcher said in a statement after the execution, "The country is on a razor's edge at the moment with pre-election tensions running high and almost non-stop street protests. Mollah's execution could trigger more violence, with the Hindu community bearing the brunt."
Terming the ongoing surge in violence as "insurgency", M Shahiduzzaman, a security analyst and a professor of international relations at the University of Dhaka, feared: "This can intensify to high-level attacks" that will "increase ahead of elections" scheduled for January 5.
"We are gradually moving towards a situation where there may soon be selective killings as can be heard of in Israel and Afghanistan."
Political wrangling
When asked why most violent incidents are occurring outside Dhaka, Shahiduzzaman explained, "Dhaka has more law enforcement than other parts of the country, where BNP has a huge support."
*
Abdul Quader Molla, 64, the fourth-highest ranked leader of the Jamaat-e-Islami party was executed on Thursday [AFP]
He felt that if the opposition does not take part in the election, the outcomes of a one-sided election,may be grave for the country's stability.
The 18-party alliance has boycotted the upcoming elections, as their demand for a neutral caretaker government during polls, and without present Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina leading it, did not materialise.
Meanwhile, top leaders of BNP and AL met for the third time on Friday evening Dhaka to discuss solutions out of the present political impasse.
"We have discussed a number of proposals," said AL General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam. We will inform our respective chairpersons about the proposals and decide on a formula soon during further discussion sessions, he hoped.
On Friday, Bangladesh's Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmed said, "It is going to be difficult to postpone the election schedule, but there is always a chance." He hoped that a proper solution will soon be reached for the sake of stability in the country.
Ever since October 25, when the 18-party opposition began their protests through nationwide strikes and blockades, more than 100 people have died across the country till December 11. Protests are expected to continue in the coming days.
অনলাইনে মুক্তিযুদ্ধ
গল্প শোনাও মুক্তিযুদ্ধের
মুক্তিযুদ্ধের নানা ধরনের তথ্য অবিকৃত অবস্থায় সংরক্ষণ করার এমন উদ্যোগে জড়িয়ে আছেন শিক্ষার্থী, তরুণ, গবেষকসহ অনেকেই। এর মধ্যে বেশ কয়েকটি প্রশংসনীয় উদ্যোগও রয়েছে।
ফেসবুকে মুক্তিযুদ্ধের গল্প শোনো (www.facebook.com/Muktijuddhergolpo) নামের বিশেষ একটি পেজ চালু হয় ২০১১ সালের ২৬ জুন। বর্তমানে এ পেজের সদস্যসংখ্যা ৮১ হাজারের বেশি। এই পেজে মুক্তিযুদ্ধবিষয়ক নানা ধরনের লেখা, ছবি ও তথ্য রয়েছে। নয় মাসের রক্তক্ষয়ী মুক্তিযুদ্ধের পর বাঙালি তার চূড়ান্ত বিজয় ছিনিয়ে এনেছিল এবং জন্ম নেয় লাল-সবুজের পতাকার নতুন একটি দেশ, নাম যার বাংলাদেশ। এর মধ্যে লুকিয়ে আছে নানা অজানা অধ্যায় আর বহু ত্যাগ-তিতিক্ষার কথা। সহজভাবে সবাইকে মুক্তিযুদ্ধের ইতিহাস জানাতেই চালু হয় 'মুক্তিযুদ্ধের গল্প শোনো' পেজটি। মূলত গল্পের ঢঙে ইতিহাসকে তুলে ধরতে পেজটিতে মুক্তিযুদ্ধের সময় ত্যাগ-তিতিক্ষা আর অর্জনের গল্প, ভালোবাসার গল্প, কষ্ট করে অর্জনের গল্প, এক জ্বলন্ত অধ্যায়ের গল্প, অস্তিত্বের গল্প, ইতিহাসের গল্প, নির্মম সত্য গল্প ইত্যাদি দিয়ে সাজানো পেজটি। বিভিন্ন তথ্যের পাশাপাশি রয়েছে দুর্লভ সব ছবি।
মুক্তিযুদ্ধের বড় একটি তথ্যভান্ডার রয়েছে উন্মুক্ত বিশ্বকোষ বাংলা উইকিপিডিয়া (https://bn.wikipedia.org) ও ইংরেজি উইকিপিডিয়ায় (https://en.wikipedia.org)। এতে সারা বিশ্বের তরুণ প্রজন্মের প্রতিনিধিরা মুক্তিযুদ্ধবিষয়ক নানা ধরনের তথ্য ও ছবি যোগ করে যাচ্ছেন প্রতিনিয়ত। বাংলা উইকিপিডিয়ায় বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতাযুদ্ধ (http://goo.gl/fOhK0) নামের নিবন্ধে রয়েছে মুক্তিযুদ্ধের শুরুর ঘটনা, পটভূমি, উত্তাল মার্চ, স্বাধীনতার ঘোষণা, যুদ্ধক্ষেত্রের ঘটনা, আন্তর্জাতিক স্বীকৃতি, গণহত্যা ইত্যাদির খবর বিস্তারিত। এ ছাড়া মুক্তিযুদ্ধের খেতাবপ্রাপ্ত বীরশ্রেষ্ঠ (http://goo.gl/XgZI0B), বীর উত্তম (http://goo.gl/QAyDi), বীর বিক্রম (http://goo.gl/qUBJ1) ও বীর প্রতীক (http://goo.gl/EFeMe) খেতাবপ্রাপ্ত মুক্তিযোদ্ধাদের তালিকা, ভূমিকা, অবদানের বিস্তারিত রয়েছে। উন্মুক্ত এ বিশ্বকোষে মাতৃভাষায় চাইলে যে কেউ যুক্ত করতে পারেন মুক্তিযুদ্ধের নানা ছবি ও তথ্য। বাংলা উইকিপিডিয়ার পাশাপাশি ইংরেজি উইকিপিডিয়াতেও মুক্তিযুদ্ধবিষয়ক নানা তথ্য ও ছবি রয়েছে।
মুক্তিযুদ্ধকালে যুদ্ধাপরাধ ও মুক্তিযুদ্ধের নানা বিষয় নিয়ে বিভিন্ন দেশের বাঙালি স্বেচ্ছাসেবকেরা অনলাইনে ইন্টারন্যাশনাল ক্রাইমস স্ট্র্যাটেজি ফোরামে (আইসিএসএফ) নানা ধরনের তথ্য যোগ করে যাচ্ছেন। আইসিএসএফের ওয়েবসাইট (www.icsforum.org), ব্লগ, মিডিয়া আর্কাইভ, লাইব্রেরিতেও পাওয়া যাবে মুক্তিযুদ্ধের নানা কথা। আইসিএসএফের নানা তথ্য রয়েছে ফেসবুকেও (www.facebook.com/icsforum)। এতে মুক্তিযুদ্ধের নানা তথ্য, খবর, প্রমাণাদি পাওয়া যাবে। মুক্তিযুদ্ধের খবর, মুক্তিযোদ্ধাদের খবর, ছবি ইত্যাদি সংগ্রহ, প্রকাশনাসহ মুক্তিযোদ্ধাদের নিয়ে কাজ করছে তরুণদের সংগঠন মুক্ত আসর। 'স্বপ্ন ৭১' নামের নিয়মিত প্রকাশনা বের করছে সংগঠনটি। পাশাপাশি নিজেদের ওয়েবসাইট ও ফেসবুক পেজে মুক্তিযোদ্ধাদের নানা খবর নিয়মিত প্রকাশ করে যাচ্ছে মুক্ত আসরের সদস্যরা।(https://www.facebook.com/MuktoAsor)
তরুণদের আরও একটি উদ্যোগ ওয়ার ক্রাইমস স্ট্র্যাটিজি ফোরাম (www.wcsf.info)।
এখানেও দেশ-বিদেশের বাঙালি তরুণেরা মিলে স্বেচ্ছাসেবী ভিত্তিতে মুক্তিযুদ্ধ ও যুদ্ধাপরাধ বিষয়ে কাজ করছেন। দেশি ও প্রবাসী ব্লগারদের উদ্যোগে তৈরি (www.genocidebangladesh.org) ১৯৪৭ থেকে ১৯৭১ সাল পর্যন্ত বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতাসংগ্রামের নানা তথ্য ও খবর পাওয়া যাবে।
এ সবের বাইরে রয়েছে আরো অসংখ্য প্রচেষ্টা। মুক্তিযুদ্ধের ইতিহাস নিয়ে আপনি ও আপনার বন্ধুরাও শুরু করতে পারেন নতুন কোনো উদ্যোগ। মুক্তিযুদ্ধের ইতিহাস ছড়িয়ে পড়ুক প্রজন্ম থেকে প্রজন্মে।
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