India-Pakistan energy collaboration…really?
Continuing from Part I of this guest post by Ashutosh on India, Pakistan and geo-strategic issues…
A few days later (after the Tehelka Summit), I attended the book launch of the second edition of “Natural Gas in Asia – The Challenges of Growth in China, India, Japan and Korea” by Oxford Institute of Energy Studies…
I took with me experiences of the previous week and also the knowledge that at the launch of the previous edition in 2004 (which I had attended too), the popular view was summed up in a single sentence “India and Pakistan can play cricket with each other but energy co-operation, no Sir, that is not yet on the cards”
Cut to July 2008 – Launch of the second edition, the same old projects: Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline, Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India pipeline- the roller coaster that is the Iran-India LNG deal- and this time the view about energy co-operation – a possibility- even call it distinct possibility. Just the previous week, at the Tehelka conference a few participants- Imran Khan, Asad Durrani and a few others had mentioned Iran-Pakistan-India collaboration but the same people said a lot more about a lot of other issues too…..and one can’t ignore or forget what was said.
The view in this very knowledgeable energy crowd, albeit dominated by western oil and gas company executives was: “India-Pakistan energy collaboration, really?”
Had I not attended the Tehalka conference, I would have just about given these much bandied about projects, a grudging chance- may be, just may be…. But then again I ask why now? And why with Pakistan in between? What’s wrong with an energy cooperation with other states in the Middle East like Qatar, or a nuclear energy pact with US?
Don’t we have some of the best engineers and technical manpower to provide a solution to the big global crew change in oil and gas? How are we leveraging that strength as a country? In the light of these, how important is this Iran-Pakistan-India gas deal and who wants it more badly? The Iranians? The Pakistanis or the Indians? – I can say for certain, the Indians don’t need it as bad.
Shantanu, thanks for alerting me about the Tehelka event- even its attendee composition was quite telling- a relatively large number of expat professional Pakistanis compared to Indians attended this event.
Having experienced a range of insinuations at the Conference may I add my own? “National enlightened self interest wins over personal economic aspirations amongst expats from Pakistan.” To use a phrase, made popular once again by the book of the same name – “We are like that only” – entrenched in our compassionate Capitalistic (the latter word purposefully with a capital “C” and the former with a small “c”) mindset and to an extent, perhaps it is for the better; we have become great role models of tolerance – too great for our own good, I think!
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