Saturday, December 6, 2008

An outspoken terrorist and asian politics

Statutory warning/Disclaimer: In this post, I ask a few questions about recent events in India. Some questions are based on serious issues, some represent my curiosity. Though written in a lighter vein, I think some of the questions are important. Please share your thoughts!

Kasab the outspoken terrorist
Mohammad Ajmal Amir Kasab, the only terrorist to be captured alive during the Mumbai attacks seems to be quite a talker. Ever since his capture, the Indian media has been releasing hot-news(aka claims to evidence linking terrorists to pakistan) by the nanosecond. And a lot of this seems to be based on confessions from Kasab. Now I thought terrorists and spies tried their best to keep mum.. Not Mr. Kasab! He seems to enjoy making revelations about plots and strategies. Hmmmmm, something doesn't add up here...

Shoo US!
a)How can a country which screwed up so badly in Asia(think Iraq/Afghanistan) be a moral police in Ind-Pak relations? Sorry Mr. Bush, I think we have enough rice in India.. We don't need Condi to deal with Pak.
b)This is a serious one. What is the end goal of US when it comes to relations with India and Pakistan? What are the factors that have led to changes in the Indo-US relationship over the years? What is the need for India to befriend US? What is the reason for US to support India's causes?

Here are my thoughts on these issues.. In the past, on various issues of dispute, India has always had Russia on its side, while Pakistan has had US on its side. US had a vested need when it came to Pakistan. Pak provided the route to battle the soviets in afghanistan. Correct me if I am wrong, but wasn't it the US gov that provided the al-quaeda and a lot of other mujahideens with various forms of support/arms to battle the Soviets?

The collapse of the Soviet union and the emergence of China as an economic power has probably given the US a reason to change its strategy. US needs a strong India to counter China's rising dominance(?).

No one is a saint and both countries(US and Ind) probably realize the economic importance of having a symbiotic relation. A lot of people say that India should exercise extreme caution when it comes to dealing with China. I would think, that the same amount of caution is needed while dealing with the US.

Stop Fighting India and Pak!
I know its extremely hard to forget past wounds. The word trust has possibly lost its meaning in the relation between India and Pak. But why don't Indian and Pakistani governments(which do come into power once in a while) realize that their unity is a zillion times more beneficial in the long term than sucking up to western powers or winning national elections.

The common enemy?
Who funds the terrorists today? No seriously. Where does the money come from? Who benefits maximum from terrorism? I am trying to think like a conspiracy theorist here. There must be some other entity which carries out attacks(I am not talking about RAW or ISI!) and stands to gain from a deteriorating Ind-Pak relation. Who could it be?

Indian Media: We Can't keep a secret!
In other countries, the police, the army and secret services try their best to hide their moves from the enemy. They carry on their investigation covertly without leaving any tracks. They are extremely wary of internal leaks. Not in India! The Indian media provides live broadcasts of the progress made by the Indian police, armed forces, the navy and apparently even the National Security Guard during investigations ; Directly from the scene of action. Every decision, strategic action is announced to the world instantaneously. Lucky terrorists, no need to resort to bugs and double agents! Now, that does take me back to my conspiracy theory about who benefits from terrorism; After all, who gets increased viewership during such attacks? Wink Wink! :)