Release of Navy Veterans | PM Modi’s Assertive Diplomacy Bears Fruits Yet Again

• The release of the naval veterans reflects the massive diplomatic might that India has acquired in the last few years, under an able leadership that understands the gravity and density of geopolitical complexities.
• One needs to unequivocally acknowledge that, this episode would be marked as one of the greatest diplomatic victories achieved in India’s history.
• India’s foreign policy and strategic architecture have been revamped by Dr S Jaishankar and Mr Ajit Doval. But the Centripetal force of this strategic transformation happens to be none other than PM Modi.

It had been almost four months since eight former Indian Navy personnel were sentenced to death on fake espionage charges in Qatar. There was a large fraternity of journalists, commentators and opposition party leaders, who were accusing the Modi government of poorly handling this issue and letting a diplomatic jeopardy unravel. But little were they aware of the assertive diplomatic strategy, played out by team Modi serenely and seamlessly, to negotiate the successful and quiet release of our naval veterans.

While speaking to the media after returning to India one of the Naval officers said, “Definitely, we would like to thank PM Modi, as this was only possible because of his personal intervention” (Feb 12, 2024, when 7 out of 8 men were released). This reflects the massive diplomatic might that India has acquired in the last few years, under an able leadership that understands the gravity and density of geopolitical complexities.

Qatar’s Falsehoods And Pretension

Qatar was working on a project to collaborate and build midget submarines with an Italian firm Fincantieri Spa. For this, Qatar had hired an Omani national (as one of the contractors) who was running a company, which had employed eight former Indian Navy officers and they were working in Qatar. As per Qatar’s allegations, they had conspired to steal the secrets related to the submarine project and pass on the information to Israel. These allegations are baseless and irrational because of three reasons. One, Israel could have easily and directly approached the Italians as they share close strategic ties, especially in defence. Second, Israel would not have jeopardized the lives of the Indians on foreign soil to get hold of information on this deal, as India is a friendly country and a close strategic partner. Third, there is no need for Israel to get covert information, on a midget submarine as they do not have any necessity to buy such submarines given their defence needs and geostrategic position.

Qatar conducted a farcical trial in which they pronounced the death sentence to eight Ex Indian Navy officers. This happened in the wake of India’s firm condemnation of Hamas’s horrific attacks on Israel on October 7th, 2023. Qatar believed that it could bully India by punching way above its weight. But it had perhaps forgotten that India’s strategic thinking and foreign policy had undergone a major paradigm shift with the rise of the Modi doctrine.

‘Modi Era’ in Indian Diplomacy

This release is a result of India’s growing economic clout and international stature. And clout is acquired not just by possessing hard military power or economic power, but also by the acumen of a nation’s leadership to harness its clout to secure its national interests. Ever since the sentencing of the Naval Veterans, the Indian Government and PM Modi in particular got directly involved in this matter. When the Prime Minister met the Emir of Qatar on the sidelines of the COP 28 summit on December 1st, 2023, it was said that the issue about Indian Navy veterans was raised amongst several other issues.

As PM Modi shares a close personal camaraderie with the Emir of Qatar, his persuasive strategy seems to have had a major impact on the Emir. Although a $78 Billion LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) deal was signed by India with Qatar, it was the Modi diplomacy that secured the release of the Naval officers. The personal diplomatic charisma and persuasion of our Prime Minister is a rare quality amongst the global leaders. With this persuasion strategy, even the most complex and cluttered roadblocks in geopolitics can be resolved. This release is a testimony of the art of ‘personality-driven diplomacy and persuasion strategy’, which has been mastered by PM Modi.

The entire negotiation process and the operation of bringing back the Naval Veterans was kept as a top secret by the Indian Government. Team Modi was well aware that any leakage of Information would have jeopardized the future of the Naval veterans. Persistent efforts and strategies were devised by the Indian establishment to bring back the naval veterans at the earliest. Back-end calculations and contacts are said to have started on the very day the death sentence was announced.

 A series of speculations and analyses will be made on this entire saga. But one needs to unequivocally acknowledge that, this event would be marked as one of the greatest diplomatic victories achieved in India’s history. India’s foreign policy and strategic architecture have been revamped by Dr S Jaishankar and Mr Ajit Doval. But the Centripetal force of this strategic transformation happens to be none other than PM Modi.

_{(Viswapramod is an International Affairs analyst and contributes regularly to magazines and portals. He has an MA in International Relations. Views expressed are the author’s own)}

References:

1. _{8 former Navy officers imprisoned by Qatar accused of spying on the emirate’s super-secret submarine programme Praveen Swami. The Print. https://theprint.in/defence/8-former-navy-officers-imprisoned-by-qatar-accused-of-spying-on-emirates-super-secret-submarine-programme/1525711/}
2. _{Cut the Clutter episode 1398, Shekar Gupta https://youtu.be/ET7E8QdGt6w?si=xQgPRmS8Iz3ivzCP}
3. _{Major Gaurav Arys’s take on the release of Naval veterans. https://youtu.be/G_q-MdHcnlg?si=0jWy1Ym36Bq2jTZF}
4. _{Qatar releases 8 former Indian Navy personnel; 7 back in India: MEA ByVaishnawi Sinha Hindustan Times 12th Feb 2024. https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/qatar-court-releases-8-ex-indian-navy-personnel-seven-back-in-india-says-mea-101707686963640.html}

Viswapramod C

Viswapramod is a PhD Scholar at the Department of International Studies and Political Science, Christ University, Bangalore. He has an MA in International Relations. Views expressed are the author’s own.