Shyam Saran: In wake of Bin Laden Death, India-Pakistan relationship could change

The death of Osama Bin Laden could change the relationship between India and Pakistan, according to Shyam Saran, the former Foreign Minister of India, who called the incident a huge “embarrassment and humiliation” for Pakistan.

Speaking in a Future of Diplomacy interview, Saran said that he hopes this incident will help change Pakistan’s terrorism strategy and that Pakistan will realize the danger terrorism poses within its own borders and to the country’s reputation.

“If it begins to change its strategic calculus,” he said, “to start really looking at [cross border terrorism] as something which is really impacting on the image which Pakistan has in the international community…If that kind of reading is being triggered from this incident, it goes very well for the relationship with India and Pakistan in the future.”

Saran said that the door to improving India-Pakistan relations has been left open and emphasized that it will be critical for the United States to have a role in helping to develop this relationship.

“We have kept the door open [for a dialogue with Pakistan],” he said.  “It is our hope that the United States of America will nudge Pakistan in the direction of bringing about that change in its outlook and strategy.”

Nicholas Burns, faculty director of the Future of Diplomacy Project, moderated the 14-minute interview and underscored the importance of the US-India relationship — a partnership that Burns and Saran helped build during their time serving their respective governments.

“Across the political spectrum, everyone recognizes that our relationship with the United States of America is one of the most important relationships for India,” Saran said.