But I am glad that they have taken a position - we have also made our contribution by putting up these problems in a very correct way to Soviet Russia - that the Army will have to be withdrawn and they have conceded this point. And the Army will be withdrawn when the causes for which they were sent, ceased to exist. Sometimes we had ourselves also sent our army across the borders. But, fortunately the causes for which we sent our Army were removed within a few weeks and, therefore, our Army could come back very soon.
I agree that Soviet Russia on the one side and the USA on the other side are super powers. They are global powers but like Mr. Chandrajit Yadav, I would not like to put them in one bracket. It is a fact of political reality that they are super powers and global powers. They have a global strategy and global interests. But one thing which is more important is: What is our experience of the super power called, the United States of America? And what is our experience of the super power called, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics the USSR?
In the last 25-30 years, since, I think, Khrushchev visited in 1955, nearly 25 years or more than that have passed we have found that in every difficult time and in every crisis and in every process of development, Soviet Russia has stood by India, and that is what is more important. Whether, one is a super power or not a super power, is not the problem. That is the difficulty of USA.
They are a super power and we are not grudging it. But how they are using their capacity of influencing the world situation that is more important. And it is very interesting to see how they do that. They have not got in their policy frame-work anything which will look into the problems of political and social changes in the world.
Therefore, if you see from Vietnam onwards, all along, whether it may be in South America, whether it may be in South Africa or whether it may be in South East Asia or in the Middle East, the U. S. A. its forces, its power and its wealth and its prestige have always gone to the help of the reactionaries and the keep the status quo. This is the difference. Normally, they are called superpowers looking to their structure, their military capabilities, their wealth and their capacity etc. to influence the world. They are super-powers in that sense. But, I won’t put them in one bracket. I would only weigh it in the light of our own experience of the national interests. As to how one country behaves with the other countries and how the other countries behave with us is the test; we cannot afford to forget the tilt of the U. S. A. against India in 1971 when India was passing through a most difficult period.
Mr. Chairman, Sir, I would give my compliments to our country. It is not a question of giving a compliment to Shri Rao or to the Prime Minister individually. It is really a matter of pride for our country that our country has taken the correct position. Why we have been able to do that is the most important point to which I am coming to. That is because basically our approach has been in the interests of world peace. Our interest is not on the side of one superpower or the other because we are wedded to non-alignment. This is one key policy that India has accepted and, as long as we stick to the key policy of nonalignment, our answer will be absolutely correct whatever may be the issue or problem that comes up.
