Inside story of how PM Narendra Modi’s Central Asian tour was a very unusual diplomatic journey
NEW DELHI: The prime minister of the world's largest democracy launched a charm offensive on four of the world's most authoritarian leaders — and everything from the right age of retirement in politics to horse saddles to herbal medicine came up in conversations that, from India's point of view, were aimed at creating a strong diplomatic impression in Central Asia.
Narendra Modi's July 6-13 visit to five Central Asian countries —Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan — was, Indian diplomats say, aimed at making India a strong player in a region rich in natural resources and important strategically, especially in the fight against terrorism. China has already built a strong presence in Central Asia.
But the PM's diplomatic approach had to be different from the usual — he was the guest of four men (Kyrgyzstan is the only country that has a fledgling democracy) who rule without having to care about checks and balances. Diplomats said the PM approached these interactions with the aim of building a rapport with the strongmen.
Diplomats familiar with these interactions, who spoke to ET, did not want to be identified.
There was a piquant moment in the PM's conversation with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, who's been ruling his country since 1991, when the old USSR broke up. Modi wished his host a happy birthday — he was turning 75 — and observed in India, politicians turned statesmen when they are 75. Nazarbayev responded the cut-off for Kazakh politicians was perhaps 80.
Modi's view on 75 being a cut-off age of active politicians had caused considerable controversy in Bharatiya Janata Party in the run-up to 2014 general elections. Senior leaders LK Advani and MM Joshi were made margdarshaks (guidancegivers) after Modi's victory.
SEEKING GUIDANCE
The Indian PM though sought some guidance from Islam Karimov, the long-ruling president of Uzbekistan, whom he visited first during his five-country tour and who, also ruling since 1991, is known to have a rivalry of sorts with Nazarbayev.
Modi told Karimov he needed his "guidance" to make India a bigger player in the region and the Uzbek strongman, apparently impressed by this request, replied there was none better than himself to provide such wisdom.
Karimov had done his homework on Modi, too, and he commented on the fiercely fought election that Modi had won and described his guest as a large-scale leader.
Nazarbayev, Modi's next host, and the ruler of the country with vast natural resources, was told he had the good fortune of running a country with a small population and large resource base. The Kazakh hosts told their guests there were many 'matching' (similar or complementary) things between the approaches of the two leaders.
Narendra Modi's July 6-13 visit to five Central Asian countries —Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan — was, Indian diplomats say, aimed at making India a strong player in a region rich in natural resources and important strategically, especially in the fight against terrorism. China has already built a strong presence in Central Asia.
But the PM's diplomatic approach had to be different from the usual — he was the guest of four men (Kyrgyzstan is the only country that has a fledgling democracy) who rule without having to care about checks and balances. Diplomats said the PM approached these interactions with the aim of building a rapport with the strongmen.
Diplomats familiar with these interactions, who spoke to ET, did not want to be identified.
There was a piquant moment in the PM's conversation with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, who's been ruling his country since 1991, when the old USSR broke up. Modi wished his host a happy birthday — he was turning 75 — and observed in India, politicians turned statesmen when they are 75. Nazarbayev responded the cut-off for Kazakh politicians was perhaps 80.
Modi's view on 75 being a cut-off age of active politicians had caused considerable controversy in Bharatiya Janata Party in the run-up to 2014 general elections. Senior leaders LK Advani and MM Joshi were made margdarshaks (guidancegivers) after Modi's victory.
SEEKING GUIDANCE
The Indian PM though sought some guidance from Islam Karimov, the long-ruling president of Uzbekistan, whom he visited first during his five-country tour and who, also ruling since 1991, is known to have a rivalry of sorts with Nazarbayev.
Modi told Karimov he needed his "guidance" to make India a bigger player in the region and the Uzbek strongman, apparently impressed by this request, replied there was none better than himself to provide such wisdom.
Karimov had done his homework on Modi, too, and he commented on the fiercely fought election that Modi had won and described his guest as a large-scale leader.
Nazarbayev, Modi's next host, and the ruler of the country with vast natural resources, was told he had the good fortune of running a country with a small population and large resource base. The Kazakh hosts told their guests there were many 'matching' (similar or complementary) things between the approaches of the two leaders.
Modi's 'Make in India' was 'matching' Nazarbayev's Hundred Steps, a programme to rebuild Kazakh infrastructure. Building railway lines that did not end up in the direction of Russia (the power centre in the old USSR) was one priority, Modi was told. Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow took over only in 2005. But he's firmly and almost literally in the saddle. There's a huge golden statue of the ruler riding a horse in the new marble city of Ashgabat. Berdimuhamedow is a keen horse breeder and an accomplished rider, and his favourite horses are from the Turkmen special breed Akhal-Teke, considered to be among the oldest horse breeds in the world.
Naturally, therefore, Modi gifted his host a handcrafted leather saddle. But there were other things for the Indian side to ride on as well. The Turkmen ruler is a dentist with a keen interest in herbal medicine. So, when India proposed a Yoga institute in Ashgabat, the president responded that his government will grant land if the institute also taught Indian medicine.
An Ayurveda teacher flew from India to Turkmenistan even before Modi finished his five-nation tour — proof of how seriously New Delhi was conducting its charm offensive.
TALKING DEMOCRACY
Charming strongmen was not required in Kyrgyzstan — the sole Central Asian state to now seriously experiment with genuine democracy and which is being run on the basis of a new constitution since 2010. Modi could talk democracy with his host Almazbek Atambayev. The Indian PM applauded his host country's commitment to democracy and offered the Election Commission's help in setting up a credible electoral process. The last stop, Tajikistan, a country that shares the longest border with Afghanistan and which cooperated with India in the fight against the Taliban, was always strategically important.
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