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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh8217;s visit to the United States has started off well. The first meeting of President Bush with the new prime...

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh8217;s visit to the United States has started off well. The first meeting of President Bush with the new prime minister was obviously productive and mutually satisfying leading to their relaxed but optimistic comments to the media afterwards. Its success lies in the fact that the existing relationship is seen as a satisfactory stepping stone for a vast potential ahead of the two countries in working together. The area of trade and economic relations is an obvious centre of gravity for future relations. And the man who opened up the Indian economy while rapidly recovering from the economic crisis of 1990-91 is best placed to expedite it.

If the past is any indication, the divergence of perceptions on strategic issues may still be the proverbial roadblock. Washington had preferred to invest in military-to-military relations instead of building closer, broader defence co-operation, especially in the areas of defence industry. Numerous joint military exercises have been held, and the Indian navy has been patrolling the Malaccas to ensure safety and security of sea-lanes. But the US Congressional Research Service has cautioned in its recent report that the existence of a non-proliferation constituency in the US remains a hindrance to more fully developed military-to-military relations.

Expectations about the 8220;trinity8221; issues have risen somewhat after last Friday8217;s lifting of sanctions on ISRO. If India8217;s economy and its vast market are to grow, opening up access to nuclear power, the other item in the 8220;trinity8221;, will have to be expedited. There are broader non-proliferation concerns; and there are national laws and international regimes that act against such co-operation. But there is no reason why apparently contradictory goals of non-proliferation as well as promoting nuclear power cannot be reconciled, especially now that nuclear power is experiencing renewal world-wide. The problem is that for a variety of reasons the US has not looked seriously at the need to adopt a country-specific approach to India8217;s development of nuclear power as a safe, economic and environment-friendly source of energy.