Action on Syria: India may do balancing act

As the possibility of US-led military action against Syria following the use of chemical weapons on civilians near capital Damascus grows, India is expected to do a balancing act between its policy of non-intervention and its opposition to the use of chemical weapons. India, while remaining committed to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), to which it is a signatory, is opposed to any unilateral action in Syria and would like “international legitimacy” to justify a military strike. “There is a clash of two different principles which India supports — the policy of non-intervention and backing for the CWC,” said sources. While the US, France and UK appear to be itching to take military strike against Syria, the UN envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi has said that international law demands that a collective UN Security Council (UNSC) decision is needed for such action to be carried out. But there are indications that western nations might cock a snook at this norm. In the event of a UNSC vote on the matter, however, New Delhi won’t have to take the difficult decision on what position to take. For, India is no longer a member of the UNSC and this comes as a matter of relief for New Delhi which has traditionally had friendly ties with Damascus. In a vote at the UN General Assembly in May 2013 that condemned the continuing violence in Syria and sought a political transition there, India had chosen to abstain. Explaining its vote, India had stressed on the need for a “a Syrian-led political process that respects Syria’s independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty” and also said that “the leadership of Syria is a matter for the Syrians to decide themselves”. In other words, India wants to follow a policy of non-intervention and not one where other countries try and take on the responsibility of protecting the citizens of a country. At the same time, Delhi is concerned about the use of chemical weapons in Syria. Having already stressed that the international legal norms against the use of chemical weapons must not be breached, India is awaiting the outcome of the report by UN chemical weapons experts currently in Syria. Further, the issue of who used these weapons — the rebels or the Bashar Al Assad-led Syrian regime — remains to be resolved. Sources here said that if the norms set by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons are breached, it reports ot the UNSC on the matter. It is then for the UNSC to take a decision on the issue.