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Kathmandu Saturday July 28, 2001 Shrawan 13, 2058.
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Poor write up
The article entitled "USA, South Asia and Nepal" by
Jayaraj Acharya (July 27, 2001, TKP) raises certain issues concerning US foreign policy
which are not clearly explained. Acharya states, the US "faces a new situation in
international relations" after the collapse of the Soviet Union in early 1990s. As it
has already been a decade after such collapse, does he mean to say that the new situation
is being faced only now? He writes about concern of the US foreign policy experts in many
factors including "global environmental degradation". Has the US been a
signatory to the Kyoto Protocol on global warming? Acharya also writes about
"insecurity in Nepal" along with Kashmir imbroglio and civil wars in Afghanistan
and Sri Lanka having the potential to de-stabilize the region. It is not clear what he
means by "insecurity in Nepal". Does he mean "Maoist insurgency"?.
Regarding the removal of President Wahid in Indonesia,
Acharya says it was "through pressure built in the street rather than normal
democratic procedure." Wahid was removed after being impeached by the Indonesian
Parliament, which is indeed a normal democratic procedure, and not what Acharya says.
Acharya’s views about closeness between China, Pakistan
and Russia need further elaboration. Relations between China and Pakistan have remained
close since the 1970s. On the other hand, the former Soviet Union was an ally of India.
Russian and India continue to remain friends even after the disintegration of the Soviet
Union. Acharya is correct in saying that India and the US have come closer in recent
years, especially after Atal Behari Vajpayee became the Prime Minister of India.
Acharya talks about a situation similar to 1960s and 1970s
when Nepal faced a "challenging task of maintaining a constant and delicate balance
among the regional and world powers". On the other hand, he writes "open
politics and policies in the 1990s have brought Nepal face to face with challenges of
greater complexities". He should elaborate what these "challenges of greater
complexities" are which are different from the past.
Prakash A Raj
Kathmandu |
