Rocca’s here

Christina Rocca brings to her job as the new pointperson in the US State Department for South Asia some pretty impressive credentials — as well as enough information in the twilight zone to tantalise you. Such as the fact that she was an intelligence officer in the CIA for 15 long years from 1982-97.

She seems to know this part of the world — she’s here on a get-familiar trip these days — including the extended neighbourhood that includes Central Asia and the Caucasus; she authored the Silk Road Strategy Act at home, which uses the adventurist Marco Polo euphemism to look at some of the more hard-nosed issues on the ground, such as oil and gas and how to transport them from the enormously energy-rich fields of Central Asia-Caucasus to the ‘‘free’’ world.

The strategic key here is to ensure that this oil-gas pipeline network avoids Russia, since Moscow makes no secret of the fact that the former Soviet republics are part of its legitimate sphere of influence, its ‘‘near abroad.’’

Rocca speaks Russian, French, German, Spanish — and of course, American — and as foreign policy advisor to Senator Sam Brownback, helped pilot three amendments providing a presidential waiver to India-Pakistan’s ‘post-nuclear sanctions.

Qazi’s Ps and Qs

PAKISTAN’s High Commissioner to India Ashraf Jehangir Qazi has to be a good diplomat, he learns oh-so-quickly from his General.
Listen to this transformation: In the wake of India’s invitation to Musharraf on May 23, Qazi was on a bull run, giving interviews left, right and centre, even telling the Reuters news agency that if the Kashmiris wanted, a separate page could be added to the 1949 UN resolution incorporating the ‘‘third option.’’ Within 24 hours, his Foreign minister Abdul Sattar had rapped him on the knuckles, to say there’s no such thing as ‘‘independence’’ for Kashmir, it has to be either India or Pakistan.

So watch Qazi now after his General’s become a media darling in Agra and Islamabad. Over the weekend, this paper called him for confirmation on a small story: Had the gifts given by the Indian side to General Musharraf been taken back by him to Islamabad? I will not answer any questions, replied Qazi, I will only speak to you in an interview.

Broadcast blues

IF you’re still wondering where the government’s media sense was during the Summit, don’t stop. The only live event allowed the private TV networks during the Musharraf visit was the General’s visit to Rajghat on July 14. While the Neharwali Haveli event was only accessible to Doordarshan, pleas to allow the ceremonial at Rashtrapati Bhawan to be covered live were turned down by the government’s media managers.

Evidently, they felt it would be ‘‘too powerful’’ a moment, with all of India watching Musharraf, amounting to a media coup. Well, what happened was that TV channels recorded the event and a few minutes later their tapes were on air, showing us exactly what they would have done earlier.

US envoys

ROBERT Blackwill, America’s 36th envoy to India, enters Roosevelt House this Friday at a time when the bilateral relationship is going through some interesting turns. Rocca’s here these days, the US Trade representative Robert Zoellick arrives in early August and Secretary of State Colin Powell has promised to remain deeply engaged in the region, especially over Kashmir. First things first, though, which is to end post-Pokharan sanctions. Both Blackwill and Rocca, it is said, are going to set a real scorching pace on this issue.
A word here for Richard Celeste, the former ambassador who brought the relationship back from the brink after Pokharan. Celeste promoted his government’s interests in India, like any good envoy, but also sought to push India’s case with his administration. His old friend, Clinton, listened to him and came to India — the rest, of course, is history.

The right bench

GENERAL Musharraf’s personal photographer had an unusual request of the Indian side: On which bench was President Clinton photographed in front of the Taj? The General wanted to sit on the same bench. The photographer was told that there’s only one ‘Lovers bench’ and nobody could miss it. Clearly, though, Musharraf’s photographer didn’t want to take any chances with the General.

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