As a result, Antony has conveyed to the Navy that from now on, the contours of a naval exercise with any country must be spelled out to the last detail and the ministry intimated “well in advance”.

Sources said he had expressed reservations even during the Indo-US Malabar exercises in which ships from Japan, Australia, Singapore participated. The event had sparked off a major protest by the Left parties which organised ‘jathas’ along the coast. Under constant attack from the Left for moving closer to US and not pursuing an “independent foreign policy”, the government is clearly making sure that it does not give the slightest opportunity for the Left to accuse it of being part of a Western alliance.

Once it was clear that stopping USS Cole from being embedded into the exercise was not a feasible option, sources said, it was decided to keep the entire exercise a low-key affair and all media exposure was called off at the last minute. Elaborate plans to take media contingents aboard ships were dropped and the exercise received no major publicity.

Thereafter, the Navy was told not to be presumptuous about obtaining clearances. Even the MEA has been asked to keep a closer watch and carefully study the foreign policy implications of third-country ships being embedded during a bilateral navy exercise, particularly when it involves US ships.

Navy Chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta was pulled up once earlier by Antony for making remarks against Russia on the Gorshkov issue. The MEA too has been taking strong exception about the Navy taking decisions which have foreign policy implications without consultation.

... contd.