Sada-e-Watan Sydney
sadaewatan@gmail.com
An Open
Letter to Hon. Anthony Albanese MP
Prime
Minister of Australia
(Khizar
Niazi)
Hon.
Anthony Albanese,
Prime
Minister of Australia,
Canberra.
Hon. Prime
Minister,
Kindly allow me to
congratulate you.
Watching you stand
beside Prime Minister Narendra Modi, smiling with impeccable composure while he
narrated his version of Operation Sindoor, was a masterclass in diplomacy.
History will
remember many great actors. But few have mastered the difficult art of
listening politely to claims that large sections of the international media,
military analysts and strategic experts continue to dispute.
It takes uncommon
statesmanship.
Australia is
fortunate to have a first-rate diplomatic service. One can safely assume that
before you welcomed your distinguished guest, your officials had thoroughly
briefed you on the military exchanges between India and Pakistan.
They would have
informed you that Pakistan claimed to have shot down several Indian aircraft,
including Rafale fighters. International media carried those claims, while
India acknowledged aircraft losses but rejected Pakistan's version of events.
President Donald
Trump, too, repeatedly referred to aircraft having been shot down during the
conflict while urging both countries towards a ceasefire.
No doubt you knew
all this.
Yet not the
slightest wrinkle appeared on your face.
Not a raised
eyebrow.
Not even the
faintest hint of disbelief.
That, Prime
Minister, is diplomacy in its purest form.
Some cynics may
call it swallowing an inconvenient narrative.
I prefer to call it
strategic facial discipline.
After all,
Australia is a polite nation.
We do not embarrass
guests in public.
Even when they are
economical with the truth.
As an Australian by
choice, I have always admired this country's civility.
We are a genuinely
multicultural and multi-religious society.
We believe in
democracy.
We cherish freedom.
We speak eloquently
about human rights.
We champion the
rule of law across the globe.
These are noble
principles.
These adorn our
speeches.
These decorate our
official statements.
Occasionally, when
national interests intervene, these are quietly placed in temporary storage.
That is not
hypocrisy.
That is foreign
policy.
We cannot afford to
offend India.
India is central to
the Quad.
India is
indispensable to Washington's Indo-Pacific strategy.
India is a vast
market.
India is a
strategic counterweight to China.
And Australia,
understandably, wishes to remain in Washington's good books.
We proudly describe
ourselves as America's closest ally.
Unfortunately, much
of the less charitable world insists on describing us as America's most
dependable camp follower.
It is an
uncomfortable description.
It is also one we
spend considerable diplomatic energy trying to disprove.
Our dilemma is
almost geographical.
We live in the
East.
Our strategic heart
belongs to the West.
Every Australian
government, irrespective of political colour, has struggled with this
contradiction.
You are no
exception.
So yes, Prime
Minister, you did exactly what Australia's national interests demanded.
You smiled.
You applauded.
You overlooked.
You moved on.
One cannot build
strategic partnerships by publicly correcting powerful friends.
Nor can one secure
trade, investment and geopolitical relevance through embarrassing honoured
guests.
For that, you
deserve congratulations.
May I, however,
conclude with one small observation.
India's foreign
policy is guided by one principle above all others – India's national interest.
Nothing else.
Not sentiment.
Not slogans.
Not friendships.
Not even strategic
partnerships.
Should Australian
interests coincide with India's, Delhi will stand beside Canberra.
Should they
diverge, India will pursue India's interests without hesitation or apology.
Frankly, so would
Australia.
That is how serious
nations behave.
Perhaps, then, the
greatest irony of your gracious silence is this: while you politely
accommodated your guest in Australia's national interest, your guest would
never expect Australia to do otherwise – and would never sacrifice India's own
interests for ours.
International
relations, after all, are not built on affection.
They are built on
arithmetic.
And arithmetic has
never been sentimental.
With best wishes,
Khizar
Niazi
(The writer is a
former High Commissioner to Australia and New Zealand and can be reached at khizar_niazi@hotmail.com)
