Vajpayee's visit to Iran was overdue. The greatest threat to our national security comes from Pakistan-abetted terrorism and Jihad fanned by fundamentalists in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Jaswant Singh's visit to the US was also a success. But what about our neighbours? 

First Nepal was taking anti-Indian postures and now it's Bangladesh. We have an arc of hostility ranging for Myanmar (Chinese-dominated), through Bangladesh, Nepal and on to Pakistan. The ISI has encircled India and the Sino-Pakistani nexus presents a clear and present danger to our very nationhood.   

Our policy towards our neighbours has been weak and too soft. What the present Government needs is to formulate a clear-cut guideline. We dithered during Kargil, with Nepal and now with Bangladesh. We cannot allow ourselves to be a convenient target whenever it suits the political interests of our neighbours. Neighbours must learn to respect us and any threat to our national security should carry a heavy penalty.

The US seems interested in improving relations with us and moving towards some kind of strategic understanding. This may partly be because the Bush team comprises Cold War warriors, for whom China has replaced the former Soviet Union as the major threat. The second factor could be the fear of Islamic fundamentalism coming from the Pakistan-Taliban nexus. The message conveyed to the Indian Foreign Minister was that the US would no longer equate India with Pakistan, and would deal with each country separately on the merits of the issue. There was no pressure or insistence for a dialogue with Pakistan, or for settlement of the Kashmir issue. CTBT is also no longer a priority with the Bush Administration. Jaswant Singh's ability to strike up personal rapport may again become a positive factor.

However, the world's only Superpower has its own agenda and interests. It would be interested in some quid-pro-quo with India. The Indian market is no longer an attraction after the economic chaos brought about by the stock market scam. It will take considerable time before investor confidence can be restored. The infighting within the Sangh Parivar, and with scams surfacing daily, it is hardly likely the US investor is going to pour any money into this country. A best there will be sectoral investment, largely in the IT Sector.

On the political and security front, we present a dismal picture. Whether it was Kargil, or the late skirmish with Bangladesh, we seem to be totally inept at safeguarding national security. So what can we possibly provide or contribute towards the containment of China, or for that matter towards checking the Taliban.? As a country we cannot deliver on the economic, political and the military front.

The visit to Iran was vital from the security angle. Containment of the Sunni axis of Pak/Taliban fundamentalists has to be a national priority. Iran is as much a victim as it is a Shiaite state, and the Taliban is as hostile to Iran as it is to us. Iran has had to absorb a large number of refugees from Afghanistan. There is the additional dimension of the spread of fundamentalism to the Central Asian States, which are also a common concern of Iran and India.

During the latter half of 1996, the then Iranian Foreign Minister literally pleaded with our Minister for External Affairs for some kind of an alliance between India, Russia and Iran to check the rise of the Taliban. At that time the Taliban had not yet reached Kabul. Unfortunately, our man's obsessive love for Pakistan led to total inaction on this issue despite Iranian entreaties. The Buddha statues may have been standing today had India taken firm action and heeded Iranian advice. The world has lost a great cultural heritage because of this monumental blunder.

Sheer anti-Talibanism will not be sufficient to bind India and Iran together. There has to be greater interaction and intensification of economic relations. The gas pipeline is a suitable project but will have to be offshores. Pakistan cannot be trusted, as it will only use revenues from India to boost terrorism.

We have to formulate a firm policy towards our neighbours. They cannot be allowed to heap abuse or harm Indian national interest while we continue to give one concession after the other as has been the case with Nepal. Bangladesh is using us a pawn for their own domestic elections and we seem to be standing by as hapless spectators. We should be generous with smaller neighbours (Pakistan excluded) but must be firm where our national interest or security is concerned. Essentially it has to be a carrot and stick approach.

As usual we continue to bungle in Kashmir. A futile unilateral ceasefire which has misfired as was predicted, and now a vain hope that a new interlocutor may pull a rabbit out of the hat. The Hurriyat should have been allowed to go to Pakistan, they would have achieved nothing. Pakistan has a direct line and daily contact with certain Hurriyat leaders, and will not allow a meaning dialogue with India unless it suits its interests. The ceasefire will end in May, the dialogue will not get started, and this government will once again be back to square minus one.

The real weakness now use with the present Government. Its image is tarnished; it is under siege from within its ranks (Sangh Parivar), its NDA allies, and a divided Opposition. Only one thing the present Government has in its favour is the Opposition, which keeps shooting itself in the foot and mouth and all over the place. There cannot be any serious dialogue with the Kashmiris, of all hues, or even the United States until this Government can get its act together. Nobody is going talk to a Government, which appears to be weak.

Unfortunately the PMO has also been attacked rather viciously which has weakened the authority of the PM. He is the cementing factor for the NDA. But he cannot, and must not allow a partner, like the TDP to extract whatever concessions they like. That will further damage his standing. The Prime Minister has to regain his credibility if his Government is to country otherwise there will be mid-term elections.

The issue of corruption will not go away. It has become a part and parcel of our daily life with little or no chance of being eradicated. If it is not financial corruption, it is nepotism. Nepotism another from of corruption and has equally bad consequences for the country. One former Prime Minister took nepotism to an extreme degree. This aspect also needs attention. While we talk financial corruption one comes across a strange contradiction. Unless there is irrefutable evidence, the so-called "smoking gun", it is considered unfair to charge someone with corruption. What if the man is corrupt, is known to take money, but there is no conclusive proof. Should such a person be allowed to continue with his ill-gotten gains? This is where the media, and the public can play a constructive role. All such persons must be exposed by fair means or foul. Till such time there is genuine fear of taking bribes, there will be no respite. The crime must get a befitting punishment, legally or through media exposure.

National security does not mean only military or internal security. Economic, environmental food security are all a pat of national security. Corruption hits at the very fundamentals of all factors which constitute national security.