We are back to the 1971 moment with both China and the US supporting Pakistan, asserts Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Key Points
- The best kept secret of the 1971 War was that India was ready to launch an all out attack on West Pakistan after its success in creating Bangladesh.
- Such was the chaos and loss of morale in Pakistan in December 1971 that we would have had a cake walk.
- The move of the USS Enterprise to the Bay of Bengal, towards the fag end of the 1971 War, was basically to stall an Indian attack in the West.
- Even the Soviet Union, which helped us by threatening China at that time, was reluctant to let us attack West Pakistan.
The US in its ongoing 'war' against Iran bombed Chabahar port in Iran on July 17, 2026. The port was built with Indian money and labour.
Destruction of Chabahar port torpedoes India's long-standing effort to bypass Pakistan in its effort to access energy-rich Central Asia, Afghanistan and Russia.
In geopolitical terms this combined with the deliberate choice of Pakistan as mediator between Iran and the US revives memories of the infamous Nixon 'tilt' towards Pakistan during the 1971 War.
Geopolitical Shifts and US Policy
It seems that the US president has either thrown in the towel or has accepted a Chinese offer of a duopoly, a world order in which the two nations carve out their spheres of influence and stay within those boundaries.
The seeds of current US behaviour were sown in the past. Indians ignored history and had fond hopes of an Indo-US 'partnership' -- if not an alliance, -- in order to counter the threat of Chinese hegemony.
It is time Indians realise 'Everybody loves Pakistan'!
The origin of Pakistan lies in the Western need to have an imperial outpost in this part of the world.
India discovered that in the aftermath of the 1965 War when even Cold War enemies the US and then USSR coordinated their approach to India.
Our close friend the Soviet Union forced our hand then to sue for peace with Pakistan.
The best kept secret of the 1971 War was that India was ready and poised to launch an all out attack on West Pakistan after its success in creating Bangladesh.
Do many Indians know that many old soldiers/air warriors have both Western Star and Eastern Star war medals? This was because in the closing stages of the 1971 War, as the fall of East Pakistan became imminent, many soldiers and air force units were shifted to the West.
We successfully hid this movement by spreading rumours that the troops were being airlifted to Dacca.
In reality these troops were moved to the Western border.
Such was the chaos and loss of morale in Pakistan in December 1971 that we would have had a cake walk.
The move of the USS Enterprise to the Bay of Bengal, towards the fag end of the 1971 War, was basically to stall an Indian attack in the West.
Even the Soviet Union, which helped us by threatening China at that time, was reluctant to let us attack West Pakistan.
India-US Strategic Relations Under Strain
Given this background, it is no surprise that we are seeing another US tilt to Pakistan.
As it is, there is a structural problem between India and the US.
According to the American division of the world, Pakistan comes under the US Centcom and is part of its Middle East strategy, while India falls under the Pacific Command.
This uneasy arrangement was further jeopardised when the Indo-Pacific Command's name was changed back to the Pacific Command some weeks ago.
The elimination of Indo from the name was not merely semantic but a clear signal to China that it no longer will play the India card.
This change has knocked the bottom out of India-US strategic relations. It appears that we are back to the 1971 moment with both China and the US supporting Pakistan.
Pakistan's Enduring Hostility and Regional Dynamics
Luckily for us, as Pakistan warms up to the US, the Chinese have become suspicious of Pakistan.
The biggest irritant between India and China, even more than the border dispute, was Chinese support to Pakistan.
If that begins to taper off, it should be possible to improve ties with China.
Pakistan's hostility to India is a constant in the politics of the Indian subcontinent.
Many Indians do not realise that the Pakistani enmity against India goes much beyond Kashmir or the water dispute.
Vast number of Pakistanis including their army chief have deep faith and belief in the Hadith (sayings of the Prophet) that enjoin 'Gazwa e Hind' or conquest of India as a religious duty of every Muslim.
In May 2006 I traveled to Pakistan as a part of an Indian delegation under the 'Aman ki Asha' initiative.
On July 11, 2006, Pakistan carried out bombings on local trains in Mumbai, killing 166 and injuring over 300 Indians.
This attack and the attack on Mumbai on 26/11, 2008 were unprovoked and had no Kashmir connection.
This is the reality of Pakistan and as I realised it, I disassociated myself from the Aman ki Asha farce.
The reason to recall this is that given the religious sanction for war, Pakistan's hostility is a constant factor in this region's politics.
The US is using the Pakistan proxy to pressure India from the BRICS group's de-dollarisation efforts.
Till 1971, many of the American policies towards Pakistan had a Middle Eastern connection. The threat to India was merely collateral damage.
This has now changed and American policies towards Pakistan are targeted at India.
These are Colonel Anil A Athale's personal views.
You can read Colonel Athale's earlier columns here.
Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff
