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Enron Mail |
Rebecca
We had a good meeting with OPIC last week. They are sympathetic to our situation and inclined to support the PNT, with certain particular concerns stemming from the fact they are a government agency, as I am sure you have been briefed. But an issue they raised - how do we plan to proceed so as to get the Indian players to the table as we move to issuance of PNT - is a critical one now to ponder as we ratchet up the signals through the legal steps we are taking. If I might, some thoughts on this process, and I hope they help your thinking. 1. My conversations with the Embassy last week indicate that they understand the message we are sending and are eager to get into a dialogue beyond the discussions with Wade about the invocation of the counter guarantee for each month's payment. That is one reason they are eager to set up a meeting with Ken for the 27th with the Finance Minister. The Ambassador, I think reflecting a view of the Centre, was seeking assurances that we were not going to leave the country but remain engaged with them in seeking a "typically convoluted Indian solution to the problem" (His words). I think at very senior levels the government does not want to be left having to sort out the solution themselves, while also bearing the international political ramifications of the departure of a major American investor. So I think the Centre wants now to engage with us in a dialogue to find a solution. But I think they do not know quite where we stand at this point and whether we want to talk. The legal steps certainly can point to an intent to leave, and I think the Indians now need a signal from us - preferably in private. 2. The Centre also does not genuinely know how to solve the problem. So I think we need to have ready a proposal that can serve as the basis for concrete discussions, and that we not give up a lot in the process. But we need to convey to the Centre that we have concrete ideas for solving the problem. 3. There needs to be a political communication path between Delhi and Houston that parallels the legal/payment communication path Wade is so ably handling. The Centre cannot differentiate the roles Wade is handling so I think they undervalue the more political messages. They are looking for Ken and yourself to handle the higher level communications, or an agent directly representing you to do so. Only such a person will be able to meet with the Finance Minister at the end of the month. I understand Prabu is viewed as competent technically but not a power within the BJP, so a decision on negotiations will not be his. The critical player at this point is Jashwant Singh, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Defense and now also overseeing the Prime Minister's Office. Sinha, the Finance Minister, will be more reluctant to engage on our issue because its politics are not in his realm - except for the finance issues. But the timing of his visit and willingness to meet are positive to moving the dialogue forward. 4. The GOM is the real problem. The Embassy made some interesting comments about this issue. It noted that we had not really called upon the support of the USG to date, and then, without directly saying so, encouraged us to get the President and his Administration to weigh in. The objective, I think, is to provide ammunition for the Prime Minister to call Deshmuck in and direct him to negotiate in the national interest. We also need to underscore to the Centre that we have a window and that negotiations need to go forward now before we get boxed into our respective corners. I hope this helps. Thanks John
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