India returns to its 1st love: Putin
Moscow,
Nov.13:
Russian
President
Vladimir
Putin
is
a
man
of
few
words.
He
isn't
given
to
effusive
sentimentality.
He
was
very
comfortable
during
his
two-hour-long
meeting
with
Indian
Prime
Minister
Manmohan
Singh,
who
like
his
host,
has
a
sphinx
like
exterior
but
packs
a
deadly
punch
when
needed.
So, while the Indian media and foreign office gushed about the Indo-US nuclear accord for the better part of two years, Putin waited and watched. And then delivered the 'solar plexus' blow yesterday when he pointedly remarked on Russia being a reliable partner for India, just in case the world's most populous country and chaotic democracy forgot how Russia has stood by it through the Pakistan wars and Kashmir and Punjab secessionist movements and provided fuel for Tarapore.
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The
question
put
to
the
Indian
Prime
Minister
was
whether
there
was
any
further
movement
on
Russia
building
four
additional
nuclear
reactors
in
Kudankulam
in
Tamil
Nadu.
Manmohan Singh said "India and Russia enjoy extensive cooperation in the peaceful usage of atomic energy and have done so for many years. Russia is building two nuclear power reactors in Kundankulam in Tamil Nadu and has supplied fuel for the Tarapur nuclear power station. When President Putin visited India in 2007 we signed a memorandum of intent for the construction of four additional nuclear power reactors at Kundankulam and intergovernmental agreement to that work is in progress,"
For all practical purposes the question was answered but then the black belt Putin chipped in."I could only add that Russia has always been a reliable partner to India –and now India partners(knows?)—now that they confirmed that in the course of today's discussion we necessarily discussed this subject matter as well."
Whether the punch of his statement was lost in translation or deliberately so is any one's guess, but the fact remains that Putin was accommodating and understanding.
Officials say that when the Indian Prime Minister explained to him that due to non-completion of "certain internal processes", India cannot go to the IAEA, President Putin "did not demur...did not hesitate" in saying that he understood India's compulsions.
Now, here is a leader of a country which has embraced democracy just recently. He displayed not irritation about the pulls and pressures of parliamentary democracies. Contrast this reaction with the reaction from the 'world's greatest (?) democracy'. The reaction from there was churlish at best.
Putin
has
fast
emerged
as
a
leader
of
a
nation
that
has
eschewed
democracy,
renounced
Communist
ideology,
integrated
with
the
rest
of
the
world,
opened
its
markets
to
foreign
investors
and
castigated
the
US
on
international
politics.
When he remits office next year, India will be sorry to lose a supporter who has had the maturity to wait and watch and the temerity to rap the knuckles when needed.
ANI
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