David Cameron: Hard Selling Aircraft and Soft Selling the Host

David Cameron, the British Prime Minister visited India recently. His visit caused much more of a flutter in Pakistan than in India. They are still livid with his statement in Delhi that Pakistan is exporting terror. After Zardari's visit to London, both Cameron and Zardari have now decided to forget what was said in Delhi about Pakistan. We will have to wait and see what really happens. In India, the main issue on Cameron's visit was how to pronounce his name – most people called him Cameroon, and not Cameron. May be a hangover of the World Cup. In any case, what is in a name – the foreign media insists on calling Manmohan Singh – Man-Mohaan Singh, though we shudder to think what they will do to Delhi's Chief Minister during the reporting of the Commonwealth Games.

We listened carefully to David Cameron and Manmohan Singh's broadcast summing up David Cameron's India visit. In Cameron's speech, there were three important points. One is he praised Manmohan Singh's wisdom. The second he talked of the Rs. 57,000 crore or the $1.1 billion deal that he has clinched with India for BAE Hawk trainer aircraft. And he talked about Pakistan exporting terror, which has created a huge row in Pakistan.

What is intriguing is that whether it is a Barack Obama or a David Cameron, they all talk of Manmohan Singh's wisdom. Obama said during Manmohan Singh's visit to the US that the world listens when Manmohan Singh speaks. We racked our collective brains for an example in international affairs where Manmohan Singh has talked and got the world to do something – we could not remember any instance. So is it that his wisdom is expressed by not speaking on global issues? Is it because even when there is a global crisis needing leadership, India does nothing to rock the boat. For example, during the global financial meltdown, there was a real opportunity to reform the global financial architecture and financial institutions such as IMF and the World Bank. Instead, did nothing to push this agenda and was quite content with a seat at the high table – we are now a part of G20, which the G7 consult to ditto their prescriptions. Is Manmohan Singh's wisdom in that he talked about the “beneficial consequences too” of British Rule, as he did in his Oxford speech? In his Oxford speech, he also talked of “equality” equality with a country of 1.2 billion with a small country of 60 million; we of course cannot go beyond equality with our former masters, can we? Is that why his wisdom is so valued by Cameron and Obama?

Obama may be right when he says that the world listens when Manmohan Singh speaks. The Problem is that they then continue doing exactly what they were doing.
Next, the mammoth $1.1 billion Hawk Trainer aircraft deal. This comes after another half a billion deal for 12 British Westland helicopters earlier this year. This is the same Westland whose helicopters Margaret Thatcher had sold to India, again on a one-to-one basis with Rajiv Gandhi. Even though Indian experts had rejected these helicopters. Incidentally, those Westland helicopters had to be sold back to Britain as scrap. Let us see how these new helicopters and trainer aircrafts turn out this time

The British Prime Ministers have never been shy of being salespersons for their companies. After all, arms and aircraft, are about the only “goods” that Britain manufactures today. So the importance of selling arms and armaments for Britain and her Prime Ministers. And selling aircraft, dud or otherwise, needs a lot of sweetening. Calling the host “wise” or trashing India's obsession – Pakistan is the minimum that India expects when buying such expensive equipment. It is interesting to see the uproar that David Cameron's statement regarding Pakistan exporting terror has raised in Islamabad. By the way, they also call him Cameroon – both on their placards daming him and in their discussions. David Cameron has not said anything that the US has not been saying either. Official after official in the US military and US State Department have been saying exactly that. Admiral Mullen stated virtually the same thing when he talked recently about how he did not know what ISI was doing and that it needs to change its strategic approach. If any doubt was there about how US agencies view the ISI, it is clear from the Wikileaks mammoth cache of documents. It merely chronicles what everyone knows – ISI and Pakistani state are playing both sides in Afhganistan. The anger in Pakistan is not that David Cameron said what he did, but he said it in India. After all, Zardari was going to be in UK soon after Cameron's visit to India, was that not a much better time and place to say such things? The place and not the content, this is what Pakistan is objecting to. We listened also carefully to what Manmohan Singh said in his speech. Again, it was comforting. Nobody has to do anything – all is well with the world. All we need is friendship.