A Torrent of Hyperbole

In an ironic turn, a week that saw the US make progress in rebalancing relations with Southeast Asian allies, its relations with another partner, India, suffered a blow. Secretary of state John Kerry cemented US ties with old adversary Vietnam, and once estranged ally, the Philippines, by offering security assistance.

But the manner in which US authorities arrested and detained an Indian diplomat in New York threatened to sour the fledgling US-India alliance. Kerry's expression of regret about the treatment of deputy consul general Devyani Khobragade may not prevent the escalation of the dispute if the bureaucratic battle between the State Department and Justice Department drags on.

Through a combination of petty fraud in visa statement for the maid of the diplomat and overzealous law enforcement a minor issue has been allowed to blow up into a full-fledged diplomatic crisis. With public outrage fuelled by Twitter and 24X7 cable news coverage, politicians with an eye on the coming elections are falling over each other to express their indignation. Meanwhile, the larger issue of geopolitical convergence with the US has been lost in a torrent of hyperbole.

Senior Indian diplomats fear that even after the crisis is resolved, the bitterness created by the indignities which Khobragade was subjected to will linger and leave a whole cadre of foreign policy officials ill-disposed towards the US. The joint military exercises, intelligence sharing and security and diplomatic cooperation that developed against the backdrop of a rising, swaggering China may not be imperilled. But the bad taste left in the mouths of officials on both sides cannot be good news for the US goal of balancing China's regional influence.

In a reckless overreaction, the Indian government has removed the security barriers outside the US embassy, thereby increasing the threat to American diplomats. In its haste to outrage, New Delhi seems to have forgotten that the same Vienna Convention that it claims should protect Khobragade from prosecution also requires it to provide for the security of foreign diplomats.

The dispute has been exacerbated by differences of opinion within the US government on the one hand and the politically charged pre-election climate in India. While Kerry tried to calm the situation by calling India's National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon to express "regret", the US Attorney in New York Preet Bharara issued a strident statement that effectively rejected there might be cause for regret. His claim that even though she was "fully searched" Khobragade was well-treated and offered a cup of coffee helped only to underscore the difference between a jealous prosecutor and the chief US diplomat trying to shield an important relation.

Ironically, the trouble between allies has come just as China's aggressive stance on its sovereignty claim in East and South China Sea has united its neighbours more than ever. Since the unilateral Chinese declaration (November 23) of air defence identification zone (ADIZ) requiring all aircraft to file flight plans (implicitly accepting Chinese sovereignty), Japan and even South Korea have challenged Beijing.

The US has publicly warned China not to implement the ADIZ and to desist from plans to establish more ADIZs over the South China Sea. At a meeting in Tokyo with senior Asean officials, Japan unveiled plans to offer $19.5 billion aid to the grouping to help strengthen maritime security, among other goals. The meeting issued a joint statement expressing concern for "maritime security and safety, freedom of navigation" - an indirect dig at China.

Earlier this week, as Khobragade's strip-search roiled India, Kerry visited Vietnam and the Philippines which have clashed with China. Kerry announced $18 million in aid to Vietnam for strengthening maritime security, including five fast patrol boats for its coast guard. He also announced $14.5 million in assistance to other Southeast Asian nations to help protect their territorial waters. While the amount of aid is symbolic, it showed, for the first time since the beginning of conflict over the South China Sea, the willingness of the small countries to defy China and accept military aid is clearly designed to counter the regional giant.

Rebalancing power in Asia finally seems to be working, except for the diplomatic squall buffeting two democracies with differing social and judicial system and political culture.