Nehru’s Impact on the World, 1946-1964 II

 

Nehru’s Impact on the World, 1946-1964 II

The following excerpts are from the Sections -Ending the Cold War and The Big Four Summit of the Chapter Five of the book Nehru and World Peace: 

                                       Ending the Cold War

“Jawaharlal Nehru’s 35 days good-will tour of the Soviet Union and other European countries in June-July 1955 was ‘an epoch in world history.’ It was on his return from the triumphant tour the President Rajendra Prasad had arranged a special reception to Nehru to confer on him the award of Bharat Ratna.

 

Nehru’s visit to the Soviet Union was the first visit after he became the Prime Minister of India. His visit to the Soviet Union in the summer of 1955 was very timely. The Soviet Union was going through the ‘de-Stalinization’ process under Marshall Bulganin and Khrushchev. The Soviet Union itself attached lot of importance to Nehru’s visit. The Soviet leaders wanted to impress Nehru, and the world through him, that Russia, after Stalin, was different and that the new Kremlin leaders were genuinely interested in ending the East-West tension.  Nehru received unprecedented reception wherever he went during his 15 days stay, out of the 35 days of his tour, in the Soviet Union. Crowds swelled everywhere to receive him. At some places pubic holidays were declared to enable the local people to turn up in large numbers to accord warm reception to Nehru. No leader before him and after him was accorded such unprecedented reception by the Russians. It amazed Nehru that the Russians, contrary to the Western perception, could be so warm and friendly. The Manchester Guardian reported: ‘The warmth of reception to Mr. Nehru in Moscow is the evidence of the deep and wide spread respect and admiration for what Mr. Nehru stands for in the present critical world situation.’  It made one press correspondent to say that ’Nehru’s visit became the most popular public festival of the world.’ The impression that Nehru gathered of the Soviet Union and its people had subsequently cemented the Indo-Soviet friendship that stood the test of time.

 

While Nehru was conferring with the Soviet leaders on problems of war and peace in Moscow, Australia had declared her intention to remain neutral, so also the Scandinavian countries. And the US declared that the Panch Sheel did not collide with the US foreign policy. The Soviet Union and India decided to take a concerted joint diplomatic move in the UN to reduce tensions in the world. Consequent upon Nehru’s visit to the Soviet Union, the Russians came under a great obligation than before (as the Chinese were after the Bandung Conference) to establish their bonafides before the world that was skeptical by a heavy dose of communist hostility. The hysteria and dangers of the cold war out of all proportion to the specific differences that divided the East and the West. Threats and counter threats and bluffs and bluster created an atmosphere in which fear and suspicion could thrive ad ultimately find an outlet in an atomic war.  Before the problem could be solved the cordial atmosphere must be created.  This is what Nehru’s visit had done.

 

Nehru told the Kremlin leaders that the activities of the Cominform-the post-World War II successor the Comintern, formed to further the world communist revolution in non-communist countries-added to the East-West tension. He persuaded them to relax the activities of the Cominform. The Russian leaders accepted the suggestion and subsequently disbanded the Cominform. And ’International Communist Movement, therefore entered into a new phase where there would be no institutional headquarters for the communist parties all over the world.’  At the end of the visit, Nehru ad Bulganin issued a joint declaration. The Soviet Union formally accepted the Panch Sheel and the principle of co-existence.  

 

One consequence of the joint declaration was that the barrier between the Soviet Union and the ‘free world’ which had been reared on false propaganda on both the sides, had been shattered.  Russia showed her willingness to ease the world tension and coexist with the non-communist world. She was yearning for understanding and friendship. Acharya Narendra Deva -who was otherwise a critic of Nehru-felt that Russia made a contribution to world peace by signing such a declaration.   Russia’s subscription in the declaration to ‘noninterference in each other’s internal affairs for any reasons of any economic, political or ideological character’ was an indication that the official Marxist-Leninist Ideology could no longer determine its relations with the non-communist world. Britain, Yugoslavia, Egypt, Poland, Japan, Germany, Ceylon, Pakistan, Burma and East European countries welcomed the joint declaration as an augury for world peace. The London Times observed that Nehru pressed his own opinions on his hosts. The Russians were glad to show themselves before the uncommitted powers that they were in harmony with Nehru because on several great Asian questions they indeed thought alike for a long time.

 

Nehru’s visit to the Soviet Union not only saw the beginning to the end of ten-year cold war period, but also the opening of the Soviet Union to the Western and the non-communist world. Russia was willing to raise the ‘iron curtain’ under Khrushchev. She was willing to understand the capitalist West and wanted the West also to understand her. However, the Anglo-US Press carried vilification against him. It accused Nehru as being ‘in the pockets of Russia and China because he visited these countries.’ The London Daily Express even observed that he was ‘in American’s pocket’ because he helped to bring peace to Korea and Indo-China. But the most appropriate answer to this vilification came up from the London Daily Mirror: ‘The vendetta against Nehru is an example of relentless persecution. It is a studied besmirching of a Commonwealth Prime Minister who is striving for peace and understanding between the East and the West.’   Nehru’s tour of the Soviet Union and the other East European countries marked the end of the cold war, just as European visit of President Wilson in 1918 marked the end of the Great War.

 

The Western powers realized Russia’s policy of conciliation and moderation. Nehru’s visit provided a break through and ultimately contributed to the easing the East-West tensions. Nehru, before returning to India also visited Britain on the invitation of Eden. Consequently, Britain was able to understand and appreciate the Russian perspective. The Twentieth Congress of the CPSU which met in Moscow in February 1956 put the final seal of approval on the Soviet policy of conciliation and moderation. This was a sequel to Nehru’s visit to the Soviet Union and Bulganin and Khrushchev’s return state visit to India in the winter of 1955. At the Congress, Khrushchev enunciated the new Soviet policy. The policy envisaged the possibility of peaceful co-existence of countries with different political ideologies and of the achievement of socialism by peaceful methods. No longer was war between the socialist and capitalist countries inevitable.

                                   The Big Four Summit, 1955

Following his visit to Moscow, Nehru was in an unparallel position from which to interpret the current policy of the Soviet Union to the West. The Soviet leaders were in favour of Nehru visiting London on the eve of the ‘Big Four’ Summit. Eden was anxious to acquaint himself with Nehru’s impression of the Soviet Union.  And of course, Britain could naturally pass on to Washington and Paris the gist of Nehru-Eden talks. Nehru was the only world stateman who could be acceptable to both the blocs and would be able to wield considerable influence in bringing together the Big Four. Thus, the goodwill Soviet mission turned Nehru into a veritable bridge between the West and the East.

Eden and Nehru were canvassing for inviting Chou En Lai for the Geneva Summit so that he could meet President Eisenhower and other European leaders. Nehru told Eden and his colleagues that just as it was desirable that Cominform should dissolve its activities in non-communist countries, the Voice of America should also discontinue its anti-communist propaganda in Europe. Nehru’s influence on the ‘Big Four’ Genera Summit was both direct and indirect. It was direct in so far as he was able to induce both the Russian and the Western leaders to suspend the judgements they held about each other’s motives since the end of the World War II.   His indirect influence was In the form of the impact of world public opinion that his tour to the Soviet Union and other European countries generated.

 

The USA, the Soviet Union, Britain and France- the Big Four-held a Conference at General on July 18 without any bitterness in an atmosphere of cordiality. The ‘Nehru spirit’ pervaded the Geneva Summit.  At one time, Nehru was making efforts to arrange a meeting of the ‘Big Four’ in New Delhi. He was, particularly, planning to arrange a meeting between President Eisenhower and Chairman Mao. Krisha Menon extended Nehru’s invitation to Mao. Mao was expected to visit India in December 1955. Unfortunately, the meeting did not materialize.  The ‘Big Four’ Summit discussed the cold war issue. The international tensions between the two blocs, subsequently, stood relaxed. It was the first Summit of the ‘Big Four.’ Soon after the Geneva Summit Eden invited Khrushchev to visit Great Britain, which he accepted.  Khrushchev paid an official visit to Britan in the following year.”