12. Normalization and After
On January 29, 1992, hours before Prime Minister Narasimha
Rao left for New York for the summit meeting of the UN Security Coun-
cil, India announced its decision to establish full diplomatic relations with
Israel. The signifi cance of the decision was so palpable that the foreign
secretary chose to make this announcement to the media.^1 More than
four de cades after its recognition, India fi nally decided to take the next
logical step: normalization. This was the most visible foreign- policy shift
India had made since the end of the cold war. What was promised by
Jawaharlal Nehru in 1952 eventually happened under another INC leader.
Given that more pop u lar and charismatic leaders had shied away from
normalization, how had the colorless and unassuming Rao managed to
take that leap? Was he helped by domestic or international shifts? Was he
not concerned about the Muslim factor? How did the decision play out in
the region? How did Rao square the circle? His determination to change
the direction of India’s policy was facilitated by a host of international as
well as domestic developments.
It has taken thirty- three years and a bang on the head to get my values right.
—Sterling Moss