HVK Archives: Shell-shocked but hopeful: Europe's mixed Nuclear reaction
Shell-shocked but hopeful: Europe's mixed Nuclear reaction - The Indian Express
Chitra Subramaniam
()
May 13, 1998
Title: Shell-shocked but hopeful: Europe's mixed Nuclear reaction
Author: Chitra Subramaniam
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: May 13, 1998
Cynicism, anger, frustration and even hope has peppered reactions
across Europe and in disarmament corridors as people begin to
digest the news of India's three successful nuclear tests
conducted on Monday.
While a lot of the criticism has been along the expected lines,
there is another story being told about India's concerns vis-a-
vis China and the West's hypocrisy especially when confronted
with a restive China supplying advanced ballistic missile
technology to Iran and Pakistan. That is new.
There appears to be a new-found patience with India's position.
Not because New Delhi is right, but because the nuclear weapon
states have gone too far.
The comments pouring in are interesting, succinctly summed up by
a Western diplomat from one of Europe's small countries who told
The Indian Express "International diplomacy is a mug's game - if
you don't hit hard, no one will take you seriously. It's a great
pity, but that's the only way to survive."
Major news wires, radio and television stations across Europe cut
into their programmes to announce India's tests and Tuesday sees
a myriad group of experts and the ubiquitous intellectuals
theorising about Mahatma Gandhi's India.
The Conference on Disarmament (CD) which reconvenes in Geneva on
Thursday is expected to hear a lot of condemnation of India led
by Pakistan.
But some disarmament diplomats who secretly admire India's
courage and most of whom are holding their horses till Thursday
also hope that New Delhi may succeed in "blasting" the body to
the negotiating table to talk about total nuclear disarmament.
something which it has refused to do. Two year ago the self-
appointed keepers of the world's nuclear conscience -- China,
United States. France, United Kingdom and Russia - were willing
to accept a meaningless Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT)
rather than have India on board by conceding to its demands for
simultaneous negotiations oil nuclear disarmament.
Through Monday afternoon and Tuesday, CNN is replaying the 1996
shots of former Indian ambassador to Geneva Arundhati Ghosh
telling the United Nations India will not sign the CTBT because
it is an unequal treaty.
India has also stayed out of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
(the review process for which just concluded in Geneva) as that
has divided the world into two - those with nuclear weapons and
those without.
The CD is the only multilateral disarmament negotiations agency,
and many arms control treaties have been negotiated in this city.
A string of Geneva-based journalists covering disarmament issues
actually walked into this newspaper's office on Monday afternoon
smiling and clapping as news of India's test spread. There is a
new-found patience with India's position.
Europe's major dailies have carried the predictable stories
across their front pages condemning, criticising arid complaining
about India, and everything from the timing of India's test to
the colour of the BJP government has been dissected.
The Guardian of London, has sensibly seen "seeds of hope in the
show of strength" to say that the only response to India's tests
is negotiations on nuclear disarmament, something the West has
stubbornly resisted.
There are other ways of placating India, but the newspaper
says....... only obviously progressing nuclear disarmament will
remove the justification for decisions like those which India has
taken..."
The daily which appears most shocked is The International Herald
Tribune which ran a headline across the front page saying
"India's Atomic Tests Raise Old Fears."
The conservative Swiss daily Neue Zurcher Zeitung has signalled
the event by printing a photograph of the Indian Prime Minister
on page one - the newspaper rarely if ever has pictures on the
front page.
The German Frankfurter Rundschau has adopted a cynical note
welcoming India into the nuclear club while Spain's El Pais talks
of an "alarma mundial" or international alert.
The highly-respected French daily dernieres Nouvelles Dlsace
has asked editorially if Bill Clinton's America has the means to
halt the arms race in Asia while it is unable to do anything to
the Government of Israel or Belgrade.
Something is happening.
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