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US 'Sacrifices' India Ambassador To Appease Modi's Resurgence
The surprising surge in popularity of Narendra Modi's party ahead of India's elections (another apparent 'miss' by US intelligence) has left the Obama administration needing to "clean the slate." Only a year after taking office, US ambassador to India Nancy Powell has suddenly resigned her post (following press speculation) as the administration explained "was planned for some time, she will retire to her home in Delaware before the end of May." This appears a clear recognition that a Modi government is likely and a problem for the US who cancelled Modi's visa in 2005 over "severe violations of religious freedom." Another red line coming up?
Via PTI,
In a sudden development, US Ambassador to India Nancy Powell has resigned from her post, days after media speculation that she may be shipped out.
"US Ambassador to India Nancy J Powerll announced in a US MIssion Town Hall meeting March 31 that she has submitted her resignation to President Obama and, as planned for some time, will retire to her home in Delaware before the end of May," an announcement in the US Embassy website said tonight.
US Embassy sources did not want to hazard a guess on the decision of the 67-year-old career service officer to quit her post and return home at a time when India is in an election process and Washington is also deeply interested in its outcome.
There was media speculation a week ago that Powell would be replaced with a political appointment as an attempt by the Obama administration to "clean the state" with India.
The report had said Powell had dragged her heels on meeting Gujarat Chief Minister Andra Modi and was perceived as being "too close" to the UPA's foreign policy establishment.
However, when Washington decided to warm up to Modi, perceived as one of the front runners for the prime minister's post, Powell met Modi on February 13, ending a nine-year-old boycott of the Gujarat leader on the issue of 2002 riots.
The US move marked a u-turn in its earlier stand of having nothing to do with Modi, whose visa it cancelled in 2005 under a domestic law on the issue of "severe violations of religious freedom". Ever since it had refused to review its policy.
The US is making friends and influencing people everywhere...
Moving the ambassador would be an easy way to preempt calls from Modi’s circle that, as PM, he should cold shoulder the US. “Being sacrificed for political ends is part of a career diplomat’s job,” said a diplomatic source.
The second front is the arrest and strip-search of Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade. Powell has been privately criticised within US and Indian officialdoms for failing to pre-empt the crisis. But others argue the Khobragade incident was more a consequence of systemic problems than any individual’s failure. Either way, replacing a diplomat is an easy way for Washington to signal it wants to look beyond the crisis.
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The US govvy is just making friends all over da place...
Does India's restrictions on Gold have anything to do with this?
Or maybe India's re-consideration to possibly allow gold imports again with fewer fees?
No, I think it is because the next two-three years are really key here, with heightened forces at play in both geo-politics and commerce in general. Of course, the MIC is slobbering at the leash, lobbying all th etime, whores, junkets, dirty politics, th eworks...
They will bring in a closer/finisher type now.
India should vett very very carefully...
ori
All of her biographies (three of them) have been scrubed from the State Department web site. The very brief Wiki on her mentions no personal data. The Wiki is also locked down due to people posting libelous or defamatory info on it.
Does anybody know anything about this woman? Seems that they are trying to hide something.
Maybe they could get Rahm Emmanuel to do this.
I'm sure that move by the U.S. has nothing whatsoever to do with last week's India-russia oil partnership story:
"ONGC, Russia's Rosneft may join forces on oil flows"
http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/03/25/russia-rosneft-oil-india-idINDE...
(Reuters) - Rosneft (ROSN.MM), the world's top listed oil producer by output, may join forces with Indian state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC.NS) to supply oil to India over the long term, the Russian state-controlled company said on Tuesday.
I dont understand - She was able to help along with arms sales to India. Largest buyer of US arms exports in 2013.
the planets are aligning: B-R-I-C-S (and any other nation that doesn't trust the line "full faith and credit"
Fucking brilliant.
Male diplomats get sodomized and gunned down (not necessarily in that order) while female diplomats get retired to Delaware.
"What difference does it make?"
I wonder if Putin's diplomats are as entertainingly incompetent as the USSAs.
Whatever happens I just hope "Steve" from Verizon support, "Tina" from Dell support and "Toby" from Best Buy customer service will be OK. I grew quite fond of them during each 4 hour phone call.
Please consider this.
Next time when you call one of these client supports use a fake Indian name and accent. For give them taste of their own medicine. :)
It makes a lot of difference. What ever happened to equal pay for equal work.
But Very Butch.
"...Answer: 50 pounds and a plaid shirt..."
HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
"Ok...Everyone...Back to your cubicles, please. 'N try not to look too happy, OK? Remember, we're doing God's work..."
The US empire will eventually collapse http://newamerica-now.blogspot.com/2014/02/the-history-of-rise-of-americ...
I think it's Modi who has pledged to eliminate all those tariffs and controls on gold imports.
How come every resignation in politics is now deemed as 'years in the making' or 'planned for some time' ?
Every Obama executive branch appointee gets thrown under the bus eventually. It is just a question of when. So yes, all the resignations are "planned for some time".
I'm starting to think John Kerry might be thrown under soon too with the continued failures of American foreign policy. It's easier for TPTB to do that than to have a genuine, honest rethink of policy as a whole. Simply change the messenger and pretend it's a new era hoping it will fool the rest of the planet.
I guess she didnt donate enough to Obamas campaign again
never had a chance in india. south asia policy has been bungled since the brits. india feels a lot more comfortable canoodling with russia and even china before the usa and britain.
An inevitable result when your foreign policy places your social agenda ahead of the real interests of your country -- things like peace, economy, etc no longer matter...
Burn those bridges!
Who counts the votes in Indian elections?
How's that Isolate Russia Policy working out?
russia ambas gone. China ambas gone. India gone. BRAZIL your turn?
the door swings both ways.
Come on ZHers. Gold may be the most important thing in your lives, but it has nothing to do with this.
If you are fond of religious intolerance---and who isn't?---then Modi of Brahmin-as-Number-One BJP is your man. He's only slightly less strident than the late Bal Thackeray of Shiv Sena fame.
India is about 13% Moslem, which means it has the 3rd largest Moslem population in the world. There was a dispute in Gujarat over a mosque-built-on-a-temple a few years back. When push came to shove, a massive mob of Hindus took to the Moslems, killing some 2000 of them. Modi, then Chief Minister of Gujarat, was reported to have told the Indian Army to stand down and let the Hindus have at it.
Now, with an election coming up and the ruling Congress Party about to fall, Modi has about a 99.99% chance of becoming the next PM. A betting man would say that India faces almost certain religious strife (and caste strife as well) during his future term, which may well result in a nuclear exchange between Moslem Pakistan and India.
Perhaps Powell wants to get out before the nukes fly. Also, the entire Khobragade Affair demonstrated the childish and petty nature of Indian bureaucracy, at least at the MEA, and that probably took its toll.
No disrespect intended, but whenever conflict smolders and boils it needs to be resolved by the parties involved. If it does not get resolved early then the pressure mounts. Let those involved with the conflict resolve it to the best of their ability. It's probably a very complex situation. Whenever western powers get involved you get a hundred years of amplified conflict and war. Look at Israel and Iraq as recent examples of what I am talking about.
Sounds like the perfect setting for "mysterious armed gangs" - are the former US ambassadors from Cairo and Damascus available for the post in New Dehli ?
btw when Al jazeera reported a while back about the BJP they were only a generic "indian opposition party"...
I'm not sure it's 'childish'.
Non-muslim Indians don't much care for Muslims, who they regard as unpatriotic, terror-inclined barbarians. Based upon the behavior of many Indian Muslims, it's hard to disagree.
People who live on 2 dollars a day, and exist among the realities of Muslim extremism, don't have the luxury of treating Islamism as some academic conundrum to be considered over gin and tonics in K Street salons.
So Indians have a visceral response. And politicians like Modi love visceral responses.
He's no worse than Obama, who routinely tries to stir up resentment and division to advance his leftism.
for a slightly more balanced view of religious differences in India:
http://www.raceandhistory.com/cgi-bin/forum/webbbs_config.pl?md=read;id=...
http://www.thomasschirrmacher.net/blog/when-indian-dalits-convert-to-chr...
http://twocircles.net/2011oct16/dalit_family_embraces_islam_media_loses_...
The truth of the matter is that India's lower castes are converting to Islam and Christianity in order to escape the extreme oppression of the Hindu caste system. In short, Hinud supremists, and the Hindu caste system generally, are the source of the problem - NOT muslim extremists as some would have you believe.
I'm not sure it's 'childish'.
Non-muslim Indians don't much care for Muslims, who they regard as unpatriotic, terror-inclined barbarians. Based upon the behavior of many Indian Muslims, it's hard to disagree.
People who live on 2 dollars a day, and exist among the realities of Muslim extremism, don't have the luxury of treating Islamism as some academic conundrum to be considered over gin and tonics in K Street salons.
So Indians have a visceral response. And politicians like Modi love visceral responses.
He's no worse than Obama, who routinely tries to stir up resentment and division to advance his leftism.
The "childish" comment referred to the behavior of the MEA post-Khobragade, which has nothing to do with Moslems. As it is, most people now want to distance themselves from Khobragade and her family.
As for who is at the core of the religious strife, it's six in one, half dozen in the other. The history is long. Hyderabad (which was not part of British India, and which initially chose not to join India) post-independence was not exactly filled with Hindu heroes, and one can find little difference between the more current musings of the most virulent Iman or the leaders of Shiv Sena. Perhaps you haven't noticed that misdirection is SOP, hoping that such things as Dalit anger gets directed not at the upper castes, but rather toward the Moslem minority.
Oh, and "no worse than Obama" is hardly a testimonial.
Incidentally, my exposure---including currently---is slightly more proximal than a K Street salon.
Namaste.
You forgot to mention al the Hindus killed on the train.
Once again your post is a gem in a sea of 'nonsense." I am not a fan of Muslim religious intolerance combined with a sense of entitlement, but this guy inciting Hindus to murderous violence should preculde him from becoming India's Prime Minister.
Some time ago, I ran across the number of Indians and Hindus killed by Muslims since the separation (1948, I believe) at 14 Million. Now even if that number is doubly overstated, can you imagine tolerating that kind of murderous activity? It almost outstrips the number of US abortions... okay, let's be serious. If the Indians see a chance to repudiate the hypocritical PC atmosphere demanded by western states like the US, I suspect they prefer that to tolerating the rampant barbarism they've suffered over the decades. Occasionally, people just have enough. In addition, reports of the state he has governed for years are of unremitting progress and modernisation as well as a balanced budget - no small miracle if true. And if the US administration dislikes him, then he might be relatively competent.
Seems like we are seeing systematic cracks everywhere. The producing nations are aligning against U.S. Hegemony. They want a more balanced power sharing agreement and maybe a little payback.
my fallow ameriguns.
this is just a small blip.
we can quickly gladio cover this up with a terror campaign.
are cia chaps have cast some lovely guys for the next indian not bollywood production.
bin ladin is dead but we have plenty of pakis that can do the cia catholic jewis works.
operation paki will soon be a go go go.
What software do you use to generate the gibberish?
Home to Delaware. Joe Biden. Connection here?
If Ms. Powell, or anyone else, have complaints about their jobs, consider the Indian workers shipbreaking. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGDZiWwF_V0&list=PLfNtycjr0BfGIoSHrGlX03....
Let's just restart the Cold War. Continuing to isolate China is not a good plan. He is very anti-China. Let's also prepare for WW III. More entangling alliances.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB1000142405270230388060457940080232...
Re: Let's just restart the Cold War.
We had 30+ years of "Keynesian" cold-war prosperity building all those cool war-toys.
Who knows, it might work again.
India is starting to look good ! nationalism has to be agenda, if a nations leader is not nationalist, then who will protect the vast resources from plunder. congress, british petroleum and ambanis, crony capitalism has held india back, its no better than the 80"s, in fact worst.
http://ajitvadakayil.blogspot.com/
An interesting link for, among other things, info on Indian politics .