NATURAL ALLIES: Jaswant Singh's talks with Rocca centred on terrorism

INDIA: Wants pressure on Pakistan to stop infiltration. US: Needs information on terrorists to stop further attacks.

Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf has threatened a nuclear strike in case of all-out hostilities with India. In an interview to German weekly Der Spiegel on April 5, Musharraf warned India "to count on the fact that if the pressure on Pakistan becomes too great, then nuclear weapon use (is possible) as a last means of defence". The General's overt enunciation of Pakistan's intent to resort to "first use" of nuclear arms contradicted Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's recent assertion that Islamabad, like India, had declared it will not be the first one to use the nukes.

Musharraf's statement has set alarm bells ringing in the Indian security establishment. Islamabad's nuclear war rhetoric and Beijing's continued strategic assistance to Pakistan have prompted Delhi to explore a new security dialogue with Washington that focuses on missile defence, nuclear terrorism and a more effective global nuclear order. The visits of CIA Deputy Director John E. McLaughlin and Assistant Secretary of State Christina Rocca to Delhi last week provided an opportunity to revive the nuclear dialogue and discuss the situation on the Indo-Pak border and the list of 20 most wanted.

McLaughlin's discussions with Research and Analysis Wing chief Vikram Sood centred on the regrouping of Al Qaida and the Taliban in Pakistan. Rocca, on her part, exchanged notes with South Block officials on cross-border infiltration and the regional security. Asked whether the US would take action against Al Qaida terrorists based in Pakistan, Rocca said, "We will continue to pursue terrorists wherever they come from."

With Delhi supporting the positive aspects of President George W. Bush's controversial missile defence plan, old issues like the CTBT have lost their prominence in the bilateral context. The focus now is on counter-proliferation techniques with both sides converging on the need for "deep reduction" of global nuclear arsenal.

Conscious of the strong non-proliferation lobby in the US, Delhi still wants to explore the more active counter-proliferation methods such as missile defence with Washington in the new nuclear dialogue. Rather than get caught in the legalese of non-proliferation, it is looking at effective interception methods that greatly reduce the missile threat from its western neighbour. This translates to strengthening India's satellite surveillance capacity and adding teeth to its cruise missile programme. Delhi is eyeing the US-Israel made Arrow-2 anti-missile system as a shield against the Chinese M-11, M-9, and the North Korean Nodong-1 ballistic missiles in Pakistan's arsenal.

Delhi is worried about the missile proliferation in the neighbourhood and is disappointed that Beijing has made the border issue rather than arms supply to Pakistan the benchmark for improving India-China ties. So, rather than "prophylactic" measures, India is seeking technology that can intercept and defuse missile threat at the initial or the boost phase. The Indian Air Force and the Defence Research Development Organisation are working to integrate the 27-km range Akash missile with the Arrow-2 system that can intercept a missile at the height of 48 km.

Revival of Indo-US defence ties post 9/11 was evident last month during the visits to the US of Atomic Energy Commission Chairman Anil Kakodkar and Department of Space's K. Kasturirangan. The nuclear scientists discussed emergency procedures and the safety of ageing nuclear plants with their US counterparts. With the Bush Administration adopting a radical approach to arms control and India viewing nuclear issues through a different perspective, the two sides are well on their way to convergence in the traditionally divisive area of nuclear arms control.