Global Interests of Big Powers
India's relations with the United States of America are good. They are improving. The U.S. President came to India and the Indian Prime Minister went there. The Foreign Minister of India meets most of the Foreign Ministers when he goes to the United Nations. I would like to utter a word of caution here.
When one thinks of good relations with big powers, one should remember that big powers are like machines with no heart. They have only interests, not only national interests but also global interests. This is true of the Soviet Union, the U.S.A. and China. They all go by their own national and global interests.
How far is India important to the U.S.A. in its global assessment? As far as the U.S.A. is concerned, India has a very low priority. India started with the mechanism of the joint commissions with the big powers in cultural, economic, and industrial matters. This is a good beginning and the commissions are doing good work. But when it comes to matters of importance like nuclear technology, the big powers do not think about India with any warmth but instead give us "blunt and cold" letters, informing us of what we should do. Priorities are considered in terms of geo-politics. What is the priority India occupies in geo-political terms? Only after one determines this factor can one build one's relations with the big powers. Mere exchange of visits and commissions mean nothing. It is part of the game of world diplomacy and language of diplomacy everywhere.
