A US trade mission, which will include representatives of General Electric, Westinghouse and USEC Inc, will visit India this week to hold talks with the government on how to leverage spinoffs from the Indo-US civil nuclear agreement, Shyam Saran, the prime minister’s special envoy on the Indo-US nuclear deal, has said.
Although the signing of the Indo-US deal on October 10, 2008, will remove the technology-denial regimes for nuclear material as well as dual-use technologies and open a plethora of opportunities for private players, it is too early to comment if foreign companies can set up nuclear power plants, according to Saran.
He added the government was cautious in this regard since India’s civilian and nuclear programmes were enmeshed. Under the separation plan that is part of the Indo-US nuclear deal, the separation will be completed by 2014.
However, in the interim, the private sector can participate in collaborative ventures with Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL). However, the government did not have a “closed mind” on private sector participation, he added.
Saran, speaking at the Fifth Indo-US Economic Summit in New Delhi, said with the path being cleared for India to freely access the international nuclear market, it could scale up nuclear power production to 20,000 Mw by 2020 and can reach 60,000 Mw by 2030.
Currently, nuclear power comprises less than 4 per cent of India’s total power output. The nuclear deal will also help the Department of Atomic Energy shift gears by procuring adequate uranium from nuclear supplies and operationalise its three-stage nuclear programme from the current uranium-based reactors to thorium- and plutonium-based reactors.
Saran said India and foreign companies would now be in the position to strengthen manufacturing capabilities for certain components in nuclear and allied industries.
India’s lack of access to dual-use technologies had affected it in many civilian and non-military areas, especially in the private sector, said Saran. On liability and insurance, he said the matter would be considered by the Union Cabinet.
India has to sign the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage for US firms to do business in India, according to Eric Anthony Jones, first secretary (economic affairs), US Embassy.
(Source: Business Standard)
Showing posts with label Indo-US treaty. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Indo-US treaty. Show all posts
Friday, January 9, 2009
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Areva inks pact with NPCIL to supply 300 tonnes of uranium
French energy firm Areva, the world’s largest nuclear power company, has signed an agreement with government-run monopoly Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) to supply about 300 tonnes of uranium annually. This is the first major nuclear fuel supply agreement by the Indian firm after the approval of the Indo-US civil nuclear deal early this year.
The fuel is enough to generate about 1,500 mw power, which is over 35% of the country’s installed nuclear power generation capacity.
Minister of state for power and commerce Jairam Ramesh confirmed the move. “Availability of fuel will help NPCIL’s existing plants to start operating at full capacity from June 2009,” he said. NPCIL plants are running at 45% plant load factor (PLF) due to fuel shortage. NPCIL operates 17 nuclear reactors at six locations with a total generation capacity of 4,120 mw.
India’s estimated uranium reserves are sufficient to generate only 10,000 mw. The quality of the domestic uranium ore is also low (0.1% uranium content against global standards of 12-14%). Uranium mining in India is insignificant and in most parts of the country is resisted by locals on health grounds, leaving little scope for stepping up production.
The fuel supply agreement with Areva also ends India’s nuclear isolation from the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group (NSG). So far, the country was dependent on domestically sourced uranium and some fuel from Russia.
Apart from the fuel supply agreement, Areva is also interested in supplying 1,700 mw nuclear reactors to NPCIL. These would be the largest reactors to be used in the country.
NPCIL is also getting 1,000 mw reactors from Russia for its 4,000 mw nuclear power plant at Koodankulam. “The first in the series of four 1,000 mw Russian reactors would be put up by September 2009,” Mr Ramesh said.
Besides France and Russia, the department of atomic energy (DAE), the nodal agency for coordinating nuclear power generation activities in the country, is negotiating with non- NSG countries such as Namibia and Niger to access their huge uranium resources.
Nigeria has around 10% of world’s uranium reserves. Shortage of uranium has already forced NPCIL to delay commissioning of two 220 mw units at Rajasthan Atomic Power Station.
It also forced the government to downsize additional nuclear power generation capacity to 3,880 mw in the 11th Plan (2007-12). NPCIL wants to add over 10,000 mw capacity in the 12th five-year Plan to cover for shortages in the existing plan.
(Source: The Economic Times, India)
The fuel is enough to generate about 1,500 mw power, which is over 35% of the country’s installed nuclear power generation capacity.
Minister of state for power and commerce Jairam Ramesh confirmed the move. “Availability of fuel will help NPCIL’s existing plants to start operating at full capacity from June 2009,” he said. NPCIL plants are running at 45% plant load factor (PLF) due to fuel shortage. NPCIL operates 17 nuclear reactors at six locations with a total generation capacity of 4,120 mw.
India’s estimated uranium reserves are sufficient to generate only 10,000 mw. The quality of the domestic uranium ore is also low (0.1% uranium content against global standards of 12-14%). Uranium mining in India is insignificant and in most parts of the country is resisted by locals on health grounds, leaving little scope for stepping up production.
The fuel supply agreement with Areva also ends India’s nuclear isolation from the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group (NSG). So far, the country was dependent on domestically sourced uranium and some fuel from Russia.
Apart from the fuel supply agreement, Areva is also interested in supplying 1,700 mw nuclear reactors to NPCIL. These would be the largest reactors to be used in the country.
NPCIL is also getting 1,000 mw reactors from Russia for its 4,000 mw nuclear power plant at Koodankulam. “The first in the series of four 1,000 mw Russian reactors would be put up by September 2009,” Mr Ramesh said.
Besides France and Russia, the department of atomic energy (DAE), the nodal agency for coordinating nuclear power generation activities in the country, is negotiating with non- NSG countries such as Namibia and Niger to access their huge uranium resources.
Nigeria has around 10% of world’s uranium reserves. Shortage of uranium has already forced NPCIL to delay commissioning of two 220 mw units at Rajasthan Atomic Power Station.
It also forced the government to downsize additional nuclear power generation capacity to 3,880 mw in the 11th Plan (2007-12). NPCIL wants to add over 10,000 mw capacity in the 12th five-year Plan to cover for shortages in the existing plan.
(Source: The Economic Times, India)
Sunday, December 14, 2008
India: First nuke power plant after N-deal may come up in Haryana
Haryana could become the first state in the country to set up a 2,800 MW nuclear power plant after India’s inking the civil nuclear deal with the US.
“Atomic Energy Commission has already approved our proposal to set up a 2,800 MW nuclear power plant at Kumaharia village in Fatehabad district in the state. We are waiting for the Centre’s nod,” Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said.
He was speaking on the sidelines of a function to attend the boiler drum lifting ceremony of the 1,500 MW Indira Gandhi Super Thermal Power plant which entails an investment of Rs 7,892 crore. The plant is being set up by the Aravali Power Company Pvt Ltd (APCPL).
“We expect the proposal to get through soon as no other state aspiring to set up a nuclear power plant has identified any site for that. We have no dearth of land and water at the identified site, which are the essentials for setting up a nuclear power plant,” Hooda said.
Chief Minister further said, “The two units of 500 MW each of this thermal power plant would start generation before the Commonwealth Games. The plant would be fully functional by the end of 2,010.”
Bhel Director Anil Sachdev, who was also present, said, “Bhel is making all efforts to commission the first unit (500MW) one month ahead of schedule by June 2010. The remaining two units would be commissioned with a gap of three month each.”
Bhel is supplying the main generating equipment, including boiler, steam turbine, generator and their auxiliaries. The company had bagged the supply, erection and commissioning order in July, 2007.
If everything goes well, Delhi would get its share of 750 MW before the Commonwealth Games. The power generated from the plant would be shared by Haryana and Delhi on 50:50 basis.
NTPC, Haryana Power Generation Corporation Limited and Indraprastha Power Generation Company Limited are jointly promoting APCPL. NTPC% has 50 stake in the company while the other two promoters have an equal share.
The debt equity ratio is 70:30. The equity requirement will be met from the promoter’s contribution, while the debt would be financed by the Power Finance Corporation.
(Source: LiveMint.com)
“Atomic Energy Commission has already approved our proposal to set up a 2,800 MW nuclear power plant at Kumaharia village in Fatehabad district in the state. We are waiting for the Centre’s nod,” Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said.
He was speaking on the sidelines of a function to attend the boiler drum lifting ceremony of the 1,500 MW Indira Gandhi Super Thermal Power plant which entails an investment of Rs 7,892 crore. The plant is being set up by the Aravali Power Company Pvt Ltd (APCPL).
“We expect the proposal to get through soon as no other state aspiring to set up a nuclear power plant has identified any site for that. We have no dearth of land and water at the identified site, which are the essentials for setting up a nuclear power plant,” Hooda said.
Chief Minister further said, “The two units of 500 MW each of this thermal power plant would start generation before the Commonwealth Games. The plant would be fully functional by the end of 2,010.”
Bhel Director Anil Sachdev, who was also present, said, “Bhel is making all efforts to commission the first unit (500MW) one month ahead of schedule by June 2010. The remaining two units would be commissioned with a gap of three month each.”
Bhel is supplying the main generating equipment, including boiler, steam turbine, generator and their auxiliaries. The company had bagged the supply, erection and commissioning order in July, 2007.
If everything goes well, Delhi would get its share of 750 MW before the Commonwealth Games. The power generated from the plant would be shared by Haryana and Delhi on 50:50 basis.
NTPC, Haryana Power Generation Corporation Limited and Indraprastha Power Generation Company Limited are jointly promoting APCPL. NTPC% has 50 stake in the company while the other two promoters have an equal share.
The debt equity ratio is 70:30. The equity requirement will be met from the promoter’s contribution, while the debt would be financed by the Power Finance Corporation.
(Source: LiveMint.com)
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Bush to sign US-India nuclear deal
US President George W. Bush will sign legislation enacting a landmark US-India nuclear agreement in a high-profile ceremony at the White House on Wednesday, his press office said.
Vice President Dick Cheney, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, and India's ambassador to Washington, Ronen Sen, will attend the event in the ornate East Room of the presidential mansion.
US lawmakers, and roughly 200 guests including Indian-American community leaders, will also attend the signing ceremony, according to Bush spokesman Carlton Carroll.
"The president looks forward to signing this bill into law and continuing to strengthen the US-India Strategic Partnership," Carroll said in a statement.
"This legislation will strengthen our global nuclear nonproliferation efforts, protect the environment, create jobs, and assist India in meeting its growing energy needs in a responsible manner," he said.
Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh first agreed to it in July 2005 as part of a strategic partnership between the world's two biggest democracies, but ran into objections from critics worried about the spread of nuclear know-how.
Rice and others had to lobby hard to win approval for the deal from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN nuclear watchdog, and the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), which controls global atomic trade.
She also pushed hard for the agreement -- which lifts a ban on civilian nuclear trade imposed after India first conducted a nuclear test explosion in 1974 -- to be approved by both Houses of Congress.
Lawmakers had sought safeguards on preventing the spread of nuclear weapons technology before passing it overwhelmingly last week and handing the increasingly unpopular Bush administration a foreign policy success.
But critics say it still undermines global efforts to curb the spread of nuclear weapons, because India has refused to sign the international non-proliferation treaty (NPT).
The pact offers India access to sophisticated US technology and cheap atomic energy in return for New Delhi allowing UN inspections of some of its civilian nuclear facilities.
Military nuclear sites will remain closed to international inspections.
(Source: AFP)
Vice President Dick Cheney, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, and India's ambassador to Washington, Ronen Sen, will attend the event in the ornate East Room of the presidential mansion.
US lawmakers, and roughly 200 guests including Indian-American community leaders, will also attend the signing ceremony, according to Bush spokesman Carlton Carroll.
"The president looks forward to signing this bill into law and continuing to strengthen the US-India Strategic Partnership," Carroll said in a statement.
"This legislation will strengthen our global nuclear nonproliferation efforts, protect the environment, create jobs, and assist India in meeting its growing energy needs in a responsible manner," he said.
Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh first agreed to it in July 2005 as part of a strategic partnership between the world's two biggest democracies, but ran into objections from critics worried about the spread of nuclear know-how.
Rice and others had to lobby hard to win approval for the deal from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN nuclear watchdog, and the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), which controls global atomic trade.
She also pushed hard for the agreement -- which lifts a ban on civilian nuclear trade imposed after India first conducted a nuclear test explosion in 1974 -- to be approved by both Houses of Congress.
Lawmakers had sought safeguards on preventing the spread of nuclear weapons technology before passing it overwhelmingly last week and handing the increasingly unpopular Bush administration a foreign policy success.
But critics say it still undermines global efforts to curb the spread of nuclear weapons, because India has refused to sign the international non-proliferation treaty (NPT).
The pact offers India access to sophisticated US technology and cheap atomic energy in return for New Delhi allowing UN inspections of some of its civilian nuclear facilities.
Military nuclear sites will remain closed to international inspections.
(Source: AFP)
Friday, October 3, 2008
Rice to sign landmark nuclear deal in India
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was to fly Friday to India to sign a civilian nuclear deal, a landmark in a budding strategic partnership and a foreign policy win for the Bush administration.
Rice got the green light after both houses of Congress in the last week voted for the agreement which lifts a ban on civilian nuclear trade imposed after India first conducted a nuclear test explosion in 1974.
The deal "bolsters our partnership with the world's largest democracy and a growing economic power, and will provide economic and job opportunities for our economy," she said in a statement ahead of her trip.
Rice will sign the agreement, which governs US-India trade in nuclear know-how, equipment and fuel, during her weekend trip to New Delhi, said Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security John Rood.
The top US diplomat was to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who is expected to sign on behalf of his government
But before US firms can reap the benefits, Delhi must sign a safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN nuclear watchdog, and a convention on liability.
"At the government level, we still have work to do in order to implement this," Rood told AFP.
Daryl Kimball, executive director of the US Arms Control Association, said India has also not provided to the IAEA a list of civilian nuclear reactors that would be open for inspections -- a step before the safeguards agreement.
The US Chamber of Commerce said that with India's 34-year nuclear isolation now history, a potential 150 billion dollars (107 billion euros) of new investments were expected in terms of new nuclear generating capacity by 2030.
"Companies like GE (General Electric) and Westinghouse, we think, are quite capable of competing there. The other international players, whether they be French or Russian, will be there I'm sure in a substantial margin," Rood said.
But Kimball said state-backed Russian and French firms may have the edge as they will worry less about liability issues than private US firms, which must wait until India signs the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage.
India wrote a letter of intent last month to do so, said Kimball.
Russian firms have an extra advantage because they are cheaper and India is used to their technology, he added.
But most of all, Kimball charges that the deal with India, which has never signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty, undermines the standards against the spread of nuclear know-how that the United States helped develop over decades.
Rood disagreed.
"The non-proliferation regime is broader than the NPT," Rood said, citing a whole range of international controls in exports, supplier technology, and missile know-how as well as a fissile material cut-off treaty.
Rood said the nuclear deal is part of a broader "strategic partnership" in which the United States helps meet the energy demands of a booming economy, sees trade with India rise, and cooperates with New Delhi on counter-terrorism.
"We have a budding defense relationship which has grown substantially," he added.
President George W. Bush, who scored a key foreign policy success following the fast tracked congressional passage of the nuclear agreement, said he looked forward to signing the nuclear deal into law.
The two countries had spent three years negotiating the deal since Bush and Singh first agreed to it in 2005 as part of a strategic partnership between the two biggest democracies.
During her trip, Rice will also meet with Indian opposition leader L. K. Advani of the nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, which together with the communists had slammed the nuclear deal, saying it would curb India's military options and bring the country's foreign policy too much under US influence.
Rice will also visit Kazakhstan after India.
(Source: AFP)
Rice got the green light after both houses of Congress in the last week voted for the agreement which lifts a ban on civilian nuclear trade imposed after India first conducted a nuclear test explosion in 1974.
The deal "bolsters our partnership with the world's largest democracy and a growing economic power, and will provide economic and job opportunities for our economy," she said in a statement ahead of her trip.
Rice will sign the agreement, which governs US-India trade in nuclear know-how, equipment and fuel, during her weekend trip to New Delhi, said Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security John Rood.
The top US diplomat was to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who is expected to sign on behalf of his government
But before US firms can reap the benefits, Delhi must sign a safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN nuclear watchdog, and a convention on liability.
"At the government level, we still have work to do in order to implement this," Rood told AFP.
Daryl Kimball, executive director of the US Arms Control Association, said India has also not provided to the IAEA a list of civilian nuclear reactors that would be open for inspections -- a step before the safeguards agreement.
The US Chamber of Commerce said that with India's 34-year nuclear isolation now history, a potential 150 billion dollars (107 billion euros) of new investments were expected in terms of new nuclear generating capacity by 2030.
"Companies like GE (General Electric) and Westinghouse, we think, are quite capable of competing there. The other international players, whether they be French or Russian, will be there I'm sure in a substantial margin," Rood said.
But Kimball said state-backed Russian and French firms may have the edge as they will worry less about liability issues than private US firms, which must wait until India signs the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage.
India wrote a letter of intent last month to do so, said Kimball.
Russian firms have an extra advantage because they are cheaper and India is used to their technology, he added.
But most of all, Kimball charges that the deal with India, which has never signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty, undermines the standards against the spread of nuclear know-how that the United States helped develop over decades.
Rood disagreed.
"The non-proliferation regime is broader than the NPT," Rood said, citing a whole range of international controls in exports, supplier technology, and missile know-how as well as a fissile material cut-off treaty.
Rood said the nuclear deal is part of a broader "strategic partnership" in which the United States helps meet the energy demands of a booming economy, sees trade with India rise, and cooperates with New Delhi on counter-terrorism.
"We have a budding defense relationship which has grown substantially," he added.
President George W. Bush, who scored a key foreign policy success following the fast tracked congressional passage of the nuclear agreement, said he looked forward to signing the nuclear deal into law.
The two countries had spent three years negotiating the deal since Bush and Singh first agreed to it in 2005 as part of a strategic partnership between the two biggest democracies.
During her trip, Rice will also meet with Indian opposition leader L. K. Advani of the nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, which together with the communists had slammed the nuclear deal, saying it would curb India's military options and bring the country's foreign policy too much under US influence.
Rice will also visit Kazakhstan after India.
(Source: AFP)
U.S. nuclear experts wary of India deal
In January 2006, an Indian government agency purchased newspaper ads seeking help in building an obscure piece of metal machinery. The details of the project, available to bidders, were laid out in a series of drawings that jolted nuclear-weapons experts who discovered them that spring.
The blueprints depicted the inner workings of a centrifuge, a machine used to enrich uranium for nuclear bombs. In most Western countries, such drawings would be considered secret, but the Indian diagrams were available for a nominal bidding fee, said David Albright, a former U.N. weapons inspector. He said he acquired the drawings to prove a point.
"We got them for about $10," said Albright, who called the incident a "serious leak of sensitive nuclear information."
India has since tightened its bidding procedures, but the incident has fueled concerns among opponents of a U.S.-Indian civilian nuclear deal Congress approved Wednesday.
The accord, first announced in 2005 by the Bush administration, would lift a decades-old moratorium on nuclear trade with India, allowing U.S. companies to share sensitive technology despite that country's refusal to ban nuclear testing or sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will travel to India today to meet with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to commemorate approval of the accord, which also requires safeguards and U.N. inspections at India's civilian, but not military, nuclear plants.
Backers of the deal say it will cement U.S. ties with India and reward a country that has been a responsible steward of nuclear technology since it first joined the nuclear weapons club in 1974.
Critics, including former U.S. diplomats, military officers and arms-control officials, accuse the White House of rushing the agreement and say lawmakers, eager to leave Washington, sped up of a complicated deal that could spark a nuclear-arms race in Asia.
"This deal significantly weakens U.S. and international security," said retired Army Lt. Gen. Robert Gard, chairman of the Washington-based Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. But Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., said there were "compelling geopolitical reasons" to OK the bill, mentioning India's location near China, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
White House officials see India as a key to battling Islamic extremists in Afghanistan and Pakistan. India has growing economic and diplomatic clout in Afghanistan.
Bush administration officials have repeatedly lauded India's efforts to prevent the spread of nuclear technology, contrasting its behavior with that of Pakistan, the home base of Abdul Qadeer Khan, the acknowledged nuclear smuggler who delivered weapons secrets to Libya, Iran and North Korea.
Opponents point to what they call decades of deceptive practices India has used to acquire nuclear materials from foreign governments. A report by Albright and his Institute for Science and International Security, or ISIS, a Washington-based nonprofit that monitors the spread of weapons technology, cites recent incidents in which it says India engaged in "illicit nuclear trade."
advertising
In an instance alleged by ISIS, India used an array of trading companies to secretly acquire tons of tributyl phosphate, a chemical used to separate plutonium from spent nuclear fuel. China, a longtime supplier of TSP to India, halted shipments of the chemical in 2003 after U.S. criticism. India turned to independent trading firms that acquired TSP from German and Russian companies without revealing the true destination, the report said.
In 2004, the State Department slapped sanctions on two Indian nuclear scientists alleged to have passed heavy-water technology to Iran. At least four Indian companies have been sanctioned over sales of missile technology to Iran.
The deal nearly toppled Singh's government last month, when foes contended it would make India subservient to the United States after disclosure of a letter from the U.S. State Department to the chairman of the House foreign-affairs panel, Rep. Howard Berman, D-Calif., promising the United States wouldn't sell sensitive technologies to India and would halt nuclear trade if New Delhi launched a nuclear test.
"The deal has been done at the cost of the country's sovereignty and nuclear independence," Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party spokesman Rajiv Pratap Rudy said.
(Source: Seattle Times)
The blueprints depicted the inner workings of a centrifuge, a machine used to enrich uranium for nuclear bombs. In most Western countries, such drawings would be considered secret, but the Indian diagrams were available for a nominal bidding fee, said David Albright, a former U.N. weapons inspector. He said he acquired the drawings to prove a point.
"We got them for about $10," said Albright, who called the incident a "serious leak of sensitive nuclear information."
India has since tightened its bidding procedures, but the incident has fueled concerns among opponents of a U.S.-Indian civilian nuclear deal Congress approved Wednesday.
The accord, first announced in 2005 by the Bush administration, would lift a decades-old moratorium on nuclear trade with India, allowing U.S. companies to share sensitive technology despite that country's refusal to ban nuclear testing or sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will travel to India today to meet with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to commemorate approval of the accord, which also requires safeguards and U.N. inspections at India's civilian, but not military, nuclear plants.
Backers of the deal say it will cement U.S. ties with India and reward a country that has been a responsible steward of nuclear technology since it first joined the nuclear weapons club in 1974.
Critics, including former U.S. diplomats, military officers and arms-control officials, accuse the White House of rushing the agreement and say lawmakers, eager to leave Washington, sped up of a complicated deal that could spark a nuclear-arms race in Asia.
"This deal significantly weakens U.S. and international security," said retired Army Lt. Gen. Robert Gard, chairman of the Washington-based Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. But Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., said there were "compelling geopolitical reasons" to OK the bill, mentioning India's location near China, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
White House officials see India as a key to battling Islamic extremists in Afghanistan and Pakistan. India has growing economic and diplomatic clout in Afghanistan.
Bush administration officials have repeatedly lauded India's efforts to prevent the spread of nuclear technology, contrasting its behavior with that of Pakistan, the home base of Abdul Qadeer Khan, the acknowledged nuclear smuggler who delivered weapons secrets to Libya, Iran and North Korea.
Opponents point to what they call decades of deceptive practices India has used to acquire nuclear materials from foreign governments. A report by Albright and his Institute for Science and International Security, or ISIS, a Washington-based nonprofit that monitors the spread of weapons technology, cites recent incidents in which it says India engaged in "illicit nuclear trade."
advertising
In an instance alleged by ISIS, India used an array of trading companies to secretly acquire tons of tributyl phosphate, a chemical used to separate plutonium from spent nuclear fuel. China, a longtime supplier of TSP to India, halted shipments of the chemical in 2003 after U.S. criticism. India turned to independent trading firms that acquired TSP from German and Russian companies without revealing the true destination, the report said.
In 2004, the State Department slapped sanctions on two Indian nuclear scientists alleged to have passed heavy-water technology to Iran. At least four Indian companies have been sanctioned over sales of missile technology to Iran.
The deal nearly toppled Singh's government last month, when foes contended it would make India subservient to the United States after disclosure of a letter from the U.S. State Department to the chairman of the House foreign-affairs panel, Rep. Howard Berman, D-Calif., promising the United States wouldn't sell sensitive technologies to India and would halt nuclear trade if New Delhi launched a nuclear test.
"The deal has been done at the cost of the country's sovereignty and nuclear independence," Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party spokesman Rajiv Pratap Rudy said.
(Source: Seattle Times)
US says not contemplating a nuclear deal with Pakistan
WASHINGTON: The US has said it was not contemplating any deal with Pakistan similar to the Indo-US nuclear agreement, insisting that New Delhi's
case was "unique" because of its past record on non-proliferation.
"At the moment, I'm not aware of a contemplation of a similar such (nuclear) deal at this time with Pakistan," State department Spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters here.
He disagreed with the suggestion that after cutting a "special" deal with India, others would seek civil nuclear cooperation.
"... of course, some may ask for similar treatment. The India case, however, we believed was unique and was unique in the respect of a long history of Indian behaviour that was there for all to see," McCormack said.
The spokesman replied in the negative when asked if the issue was raised by the Pakistan leadership during recent bilateral meetings.
"In the most recent meeting with the Secretary (Condolezzaa Rice), that's the only one I can personally speak to at this point. That issue did not come up. I know that the issue has come up periodically in public. I think I've had to
answer questions about it before and our position is the same" he said.
Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani yesterday day indicated that the country may seek a similar arrangement with its close ally China.
"Pakistan will now make efforts for a civil nuclear deal and they (the world community) will have to accommodate us," Gilani told reporters in Multan, soon after the Indo-US nuclear deal was approved by the US Senate.
(Source: The Economic Times, India)
case was "unique" because of its past record on non-proliferation.
"At the moment, I'm not aware of a contemplation of a similar such (nuclear) deal at this time with Pakistan," State department Spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters here.
He disagreed with the suggestion that after cutting a "special" deal with India, others would seek civil nuclear cooperation.
"... of course, some may ask for similar treatment. The India case, however, we believed was unique and was unique in the respect of a long history of Indian behaviour that was there for all to see," McCormack said.
The spokesman replied in the negative when asked if the issue was raised by the Pakistan leadership during recent bilateral meetings.
"In the most recent meeting with the Secretary (Condolezzaa Rice), that's the only one I can personally speak to at this point. That issue did not come up. I know that the issue has come up periodically in public. I think I've had to
answer questions about it before and our position is the same" he said.
Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani yesterday day indicated that the country may seek a similar arrangement with its close ally China.
"Pakistan will now make efforts for a civil nuclear deal and they (the world community) will have to accommodate us," Gilani told reporters in Multan, soon after the Indo-US nuclear deal was approved by the US Senate.
(Source: The Economic Times, India)
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Pakistan PM eyes nuclear deal after India-U.S. pact
India's landmark nuclear trade agreement with the United States should open the way for a similar deal for Pakistan, the country's prime minister said on Thursday.
The U.S. Congress approved the deal late on Wednesday ending a three-decade ban on U.S. nuclear trade with India, unleashing billions of dollars of investment and drawing the world's biggest democracy closer to the West.
Critics say the deal does grave damage to global efforts to contain the spread of nuclear weapons, by letting India import nuclear fuel and technology even though it has tested nuclear weapons and never signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
In nuclear-armed Pakistan, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani said the deal should not be seen as a cause for concern.
"You don't have to be worried about it," Gilani told reporters in his home town of Multan when asked about the deal.
Pakistan has fought three wars with India since their independence in 1947 and nearly went to war a fourth time in 2002. Their relations have improved since they began a peace process in early 2004.
"Pakistan will now be justified to also make a demand for a similar deal as we don't want discrimination," Gilani said.
"Pakistan will also now make efforts for a civil nuclear (deal) and they will have to accommodate us," he said.
Pakistan tested nuclear weapons in May 1998 in a tit-for-tat response to tests by India. Pakistan has also never signed up to the NPT.
Pakistan is one of the biggest recipients of U.S. aid and is a major ally in the U.S.-led campaign against militancy.
But in U.S. eyes, Pakistan cannot be treated like India because it lacks a long track record of democracy and nuclear non-proliferation.
A ring led by the scientist seen as the father of Pakistan's nuclear bomb, Abdul Qadeer Khan, smuggled bomb-suitable nuclear technology to unstable regions before it was smashed in 2004.
(Source: Reuters India)
The U.S. Congress approved the deal late on Wednesday ending a three-decade ban on U.S. nuclear trade with India, unleashing billions of dollars of investment and drawing the world's biggest democracy closer to the West.
Critics say the deal does grave damage to global efforts to contain the spread of nuclear weapons, by letting India import nuclear fuel and technology even though it has tested nuclear weapons and never signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
In nuclear-armed Pakistan, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani said the deal should not be seen as a cause for concern.
"You don't have to be worried about it," Gilani told reporters in his home town of Multan when asked about the deal.
Pakistan has fought three wars with India since their independence in 1947 and nearly went to war a fourth time in 2002. Their relations have improved since they began a peace process in early 2004.
"Pakistan will now be justified to also make a demand for a similar deal as we don't want discrimination," Gilani said.
"Pakistan will also now make efforts for a civil nuclear (deal) and they will have to accommodate us," he said.
Pakistan tested nuclear weapons in May 1998 in a tit-for-tat response to tests by India. Pakistan has also never signed up to the NPT.
Pakistan is one of the biggest recipients of U.S. aid and is a major ally in the U.S.-led campaign against militancy.
But in U.S. eyes, Pakistan cannot be treated like India because it lacks a long track record of democracy and nuclear non-proliferation.
A ring led by the scientist seen as the father of Pakistan's nuclear bomb, Abdul Qadeer Khan, smuggled bomb-suitable nuclear technology to unstable regions before it was smashed in 2004.
(Source: Reuters India)
India energised by nuclear pacts
India's atomic energy pact with France represents a major step for the fast developing country, marking the moment it finally rid itself of its status as a nuclear outcast.
A separate deal with the United States was passed by the US Senate on Wednesday, cementing India's new position in what Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has called "the global nuclear order."
The accord with France, signed in Paris on Tuesday, ended a ban on countries selling civilian nuclear technology and equipment to New Delhi, imposed in 1974 when India used its civilian programme to produce and test an atomic bomb.
Security analyst C. Uday Bhaskar said the pacts would remove the tag of "nuclear transgressor" and give India "a unique and exceptional status that is recognised by the world."
"India is not a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), it is not recognised as a nuclear weapon state, but New Delhi can buy reactors, fuel and technology from the international market," said Bhaskar, former head of the Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses.
"This places India in a class apart from Pakistan, Israel and North Korea, countries that have nuclear weapons but cannot engage in nuclear commerce," he said.
The fact that New Delhi, which also carried out nuclear tests in 1998, had managed to re-enter global nuclear commerce on its own terms represents a "significant victory for Indian diplomacy," he added.
Arundhati Ghosh, India's former envoy to the Geneva-based Conference on Disarmament, said the two deals would help to secure the emerging South Asian giant a seat at "the global high table."
The pacts should also allow India to boost its economic growth rate, she said.
New Delhi, which has recently been expanding economically at the rate of over eight percent, has been on the lookout for cheaper and cleaner sources of fuel to accelerate to double-digit growth.
"The deals open the way for India to increase economic growth and sustain it by providing cheap means of electricity for industry and agriculture," she said.
India is being courted by high profile groups like the Group of Eight industrialised nations and is increasingly consulted on major international issues, she noted.
"If India can maintain 10 percent growth rate like China, the world will be seeking India to be part of it and its institutions rather than us seeking be members of bodies like the UN Security Council."
On the domestic front, the pacts represent "a diplomatic feather in Prime Minister Singh's cap," said political analyst and author Rasheed Kidwai.
"It has boosted Singh's image as somebody who can take tough decisions, stand up for his convictions and set his own agenda after seen as dithering for months," Kidwai said.
He was referring to Singh winning a confidence vote in parliament in July on the issue of civilian nuclear energy cooperation with countries including the United States.
It was Washington's support that paved the way for the International Atomic Energy Agency and the 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group giving India the green light to engage in nuclear commerce.
Other analysts however warned that India still had some way to go.
A spate of bomb attacks and clashes between the dominant Hindu community and the minority Muslims and Christians had cast a shadow on India's image, said Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, head of the School of Convergence think-tank.
"India needs to learn the virtues of inclusive politics and religious tolerance, and to recognise that diversity is its strength rather than its weakness. Only then can it be recognised as a great power," Thakurta said.
(Source: AFP)
A separate deal with the United States was passed by the US Senate on Wednesday, cementing India's new position in what Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has called "the global nuclear order."
The accord with France, signed in Paris on Tuesday, ended a ban on countries selling civilian nuclear technology and equipment to New Delhi, imposed in 1974 when India used its civilian programme to produce and test an atomic bomb.
Security analyst C. Uday Bhaskar said the pacts would remove the tag of "nuclear transgressor" and give India "a unique and exceptional status that is recognised by the world."
"India is not a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), it is not recognised as a nuclear weapon state, but New Delhi can buy reactors, fuel and technology from the international market," said Bhaskar, former head of the Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses.
"This places India in a class apart from Pakistan, Israel and North Korea, countries that have nuclear weapons but cannot engage in nuclear commerce," he said.
The fact that New Delhi, which also carried out nuclear tests in 1998, had managed to re-enter global nuclear commerce on its own terms represents a "significant victory for Indian diplomacy," he added.
Arundhati Ghosh, India's former envoy to the Geneva-based Conference on Disarmament, said the two deals would help to secure the emerging South Asian giant a seat at "the global high table."
The pacts should also allow India to boost its economic growth rate, she said.
New Delhi, which has recently been expanding economically at the rate of over eight percent, has been on the lookout for cheaper and cleaner sources of fuel to accelerate to double-digit growth.
"The deals open the way for India to increase economic growth and sustain it by providing cheap means of electricity for industry and agriculture," she said.
India is being courted by high profile groups like the Group of Eight industrialised nations and is increasingly consulted on major international issues, she noted.
"If India can maintain 10 percent growth rate like China, the world will be seeking India to be part of it and its institutions rather than us seeking be members of bodies like the UN Security Council."
On the domestic front, the pacts represent "a diplomatic feather in Prime Minister Singh's cap," said political analyst and author Rasheed Kidwai.
"It has boosted Singh's image as somebody who can take tough decisions, stand up for his convictions and set his own agenda after seen as dithering for months," Kidwai said.
He was referring to Singh winning a confidence vote in parliament in July on the issue of civilian nuclear energy cooperation with countries including the United States.
It was Washington's support that paved the way for the International Atomic Energy Agency and the 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group giving India the green light to engage in nuclear commerce.
Other analysts however warned that India still had some way to go.
A spate of bomb attacks and clashes between the dominant Hindu community and the minority Muslims and Christians had cast a shadow on India's image, said Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, head of the School of Convergence think-tank.
"India needs to learn the virtues of inclusive politics and religious tolerance, and to recognise that diversity is its strength rather than its weakness. Only then can it be recognised as a great power," Thakurta said.
(Source: AFP)
US overturns ban on nuclear trade with India
The United States yesterday overturned a three-decade ban on the trade of atomic fuel and technology with India, providing President Bush with what may prove his most significant foreign policy victory while in office.
Analysts say the landmark move underscores Washington's ambitions to champion India as an Asian counterweight to China. India has argued that access to nuclear power is essential to fuel its economic rise.
President Bush said the legislation "will strengthen our global nuclear non-proliferation efforts, protect the environment, create jobs and assist India in meeting its growing energy needs in a responsible manner."
However, critics have condemned Mr Bush's unprecedented willingness to supply India with civilian nuclear technology despite the country's refusal to sign the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty or the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. India tested nuclear weapons as recently as 1998 and has refused to rule out doing so again.
The Washington-based Arms Control Association recently called the decision to allow India into the nuclear club "a non-proliferation disaster of historic proportions that will produce harm for decades to come."
Shrugging off those concerns, the US Senate voted 86-13 to allow India to buy civilian atomic technology, including nuclear fuel and reactors, from American companies.
Mr Bush's administration had already played a key role in ending India's status as an international nuclear pariah by pushing the Nuclear Suppliers' Group (NSG) to drop its ban on trade with the country last month.
The NSG, a group of 45 nations that legally supply nuclear fuel and technology, was created after India shocked the world by testing its first atomic device in 1974. It had prevented Delhi from importing the nuclear material it says it needs to help to meet rocketing domestic energy demand.
In India, the governing Congress party spokesman Veerappa Moily said: "The nuclear deal is a monumental achievement. It's a victory of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government."
Mr Singh had risked a collapse of his government in pushing through the nuclear deal, which his opponents have claimed will make India a geopolitical vassal of the US.
India's nuclear power requirements are expected to be worth as much as pounds 17 billion over the next 15 years. Most observers expect Russia and France, which this week signed a nuclear trade pact with India, to be the main beneficiaries.
However, several big US arms companies lobbied hard in Washington in favour for the nuclear deal. They hope that closer ties between the countries will help American companies in massive upcoming tenders to supply India with fighter plane and other military equipment.
The Senate's move came just ahead of an expected trip to India this weekend by the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
(Source: Times Online)
Analysts say the landmark move underscores Washington's ambitions to champion India as an Asian counterweight to China. India has argued that access to nuclear power is essential to fuel its economic rise.
President Bush said the legislation "will strengthen our global nuclear non-proliferation efforts, protect the environment, create jobs and assist India in meeting its growing energy needs in a responsible manner."
However, critics have condemned Mr Bush's unprecedented willingness to supply India with civilian nuclear technology despite the country's refusal to sign the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty or the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. India tested nuclear weapons as recently as 1998 and has refused to rule out doing so again.
The Washington-based Arms Control Association recently called the decision to allow India into the nuclear club "a non-proliferation disaster of historic proportions that will produce harm for decades to come."
Shrugging off those concerns, the US Senate voted 86-13 to allow India to buy civilian atomic technology, including nuclear fuel and reactors, from American companies.
Mr Bush's administration had already played a key role in ending India's status as an international nuclear pariah by pushing the Nuclear Suppliers' Group (NSG) to drop its ban on trade with the country last month.
The NSG, a group of 45 nations that legally supply nuclear fuel and technology, was created after India shocked the world by testing its first atomic device in 1974. It had prevented Delhi from importing the nuclear material it says it needs to help to meet rocketing domestic energy demand.
In India, the governing Congress party spokesman Veerappa Moily said: "The nuclear deal is a monumental achievement. It's a victory of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government."
Mr Singh had risked a collapse of his government in pushing through the nuclear deal, which his opponents have claimed will make India a geopolitical vassal of the US.
India's nuclear power requirements are expected to be worth as much as pounds 17 billion over the next 15 years. Most observers expect Russia and France, which this week signed a nuclear trade pact with India, to be the main beneficiaries.
However, several big US arms companies lobbied hard in Washington in favour for the nuclear deal. They hope that closer ties between the countries will help American companies in massive upcoming tenders to supply India with fighter plane and other military equipment.
The Senate's move came just ahead of an expected trip to India this weekend by the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
(Source: Times Online)
US Signs Up To India Nuclear Deal
India's governing party has hailed a controversial nuclear energy deal with the US as a "monumental achievement".
An official said that US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice would visit New Delhi soon to sign the accord.
The US Senate voted overwhelmingly in favor of overturning a three-decade ban on atomic trade with India, allowing American businesses to begin selling nuclear fuel, technology and reactors in exchange for safeguards and UN inspections of India's civilian nuclear plants.
The US House of Representatives had earlier approved the accord, which now goes to President George Bush, a consistent supporter of the deal, for final approval.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was forced to call a confidence vote in his government in July after his former communist allies withdrew support from his coalition in protest at the nuclear agreement.
They said it would bring too much American influence into Indian politics.
Mr Singh narrowly won the vote by forging a new alliance with a regional socialist party but there were tumultuous scenes in parliament as opponents accused the government of making underhand deals to win support.
Reacting to the US Senate's approval, Veerappa Moily, a spokesman for India's ruling Congress party, said: "The nuclear deal is a monumental achievement. It's a victory of Prime Minister Singh's government."
Mr Bush said the deal would "strengthen our global nuclear nonproliferation efforts, protect the environment, create jobs and assist India in meeting its growing energy needs in a responsible manner".
India has refused to sign the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and has been subject to a nuclear trade ban since its first atomic test in 1974.
Its most recent nuclear test blast was in 1998.
Opposition and communist parties criticised the deal, saying India has forfeited its right to hold future nuclear tests, and vowed to continue to oppose it.
Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party spokesman Rajiv Pratap Rudy said: "The deal has been done at the cost of the country's sovereignty and nuclear independence."
Communist Party of India leader D Raja said left-wing parties would intensify their countrywide protests in the hope of preventing the government from implementing the nuclear pact.
India imports about 75% of its oil and Mr Singh, the architect of India's 1991 transformation from a socialist to a capitalist-style economy, has argued the country needs the nuclear deal to power its financial growth and lift its citizens out of poverty.
India has faced a shortage of enriched uranium and the accord will help it obtain fuel for its 22 civilian nuclear reactors which currently operate at less than 50% of capacity, said K Subrahmanyam, a defence expert and former member of India's National Security Council.
(Source: Sky News)
An official said that US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice would visit New Delhi soon to sign the accord.
The US Senate voted overwhelmingly in favor of overturning a three-decade ban on atomic trade with India, allowing American businesses to begin selling nuclear fuel, technology and reactors in exchange for safeguards and UN inspections of India's civilian nuclear plants.
The US House of Representatives had earlier approved the accord, which now goes to President George Bush, a consistent supporter of the deal, for final approval.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was forced to call a confidence vote in his government in July after his former communist allies withdrew support from his coalition in protest at the nuclear agreement.
They said it would bring too much American influence into Indian politics.
Mr Singh narrowly won the vote by forging a new alliance with a regional socialist party but there were tumultuous scenes in parliament as opponents accused the government of making underhand deals to win support.
Reacting to the US Senate's approval, Veerappa Moily, a spokesman for India's ruling Congress party, said: "The nuclear deal is a monumental achievement. It's a victory of Prime Minister Singh's government."
Mr Bush said the deal would "strengthen our global nuclear nonproliferation efforts, protect the environment, create jobs and assist India in meeting its growing energy needs in a responsible manner".
India has refused to sign the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and has been subject to a nuclear trade ban since its first atomic test in 1974.
Its most recent nuclear test blast was in 1998.
Opposition and communist parties criticised the deal, saying India has forfeited its right to hold future nuclear tests, and vowed to continue to oppose it.
Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party spokesman Rajiv Pratap Rudy said: "The deal has been done at the cost of the country's sovereignty and nuclear independence."
Communist Party of India leader D Raja said left-wing parties would intensify their countrywide protests in the hope of preventing the government from implementing the nuclear pact.
India imports about 75% of its oil and Mr Singh, the architect of India's 1991 transformation from a socialist to a capitalist-style economy, has argued the country needs the nuclear deal to power its financial growth and lift its citizens out of poverty.
India has faced a shortage of enriched uranium and the accord will help it obtain fuel for its 22 civilian nuclear reactors which currently operate at less than 50% of capacity, said K Subrahmanyam, a defence expert and former member of India's National Security Council.
(Source: Sky News)
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
India, France ink nuclear deal, first after NSG waiver
India on Tuesday emerged out of a 34-year-old nuclear isolation and signed a historic agreement for civil nuclear cooperation with France. With this pact, France became the first country to enter into a formal understanding with India after the Nuclear Suppliers Group exempted India from its guidelines earlier this month.
The agreement, which was finalised in January when French President Nicholas Sarkozy visited India as chief guest for the Republic Day, was signed this afternoon by French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and Department of Atomic Energy head Anil Kakodkar on the Indian side.
But the agreement can be operationalised only after India signs the already concluded safeguards agreement with IAEA. Though technically India already has six reactors under safeguards for which cooperation can begin, a call on this has still not been taken and partners like France first need to agree. The best case scenario for India would be to have three agreements with US, France and Russia sealed in the next two months and then sign the safeguards agreement.
“Today we have added a new dimension to our strategic partnership... France is the first country with whom we have entered into such an agreement after lifting of international restrictions on civil nuclear cooperation with India by the Nuclear Suppliers Group. I conveyed to President Sarkozy our gratitude for France’s consistent support to our civil nuclear initiative,” said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
(Source: Indian Express)
The agreement, which was finalised in January when French President Nicholas Sarkozy visited India as chief guest for the Republic Day, was signed this afternoon by French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and Department of Atomic Energy head Anil Kakodkar on the Indian side.
But the agreement can be operationalised only after India signs the already concluded safeguards agreement with IAEA. Though technically India already has six reactors under safeguards for which cooperation can begin, a call on this has still not been taken and partners like France first need to agree. The best case scenario for India would be to have three agreements with US, France and Russia sealed in the next two months and then sign the safeguards agreement.
“Today we have added a new dimension to our strategic partnership... France is the first country with whom we have entered into such an agreement after lifting of international restrictions on civil nuclear cooperation with India by the Nuclear Suppliers Group. I conveyed to President Sarkozy our gratitude for France’s consistent support to our civil nuclear initiative,” said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
(Source: Indian Express)
Objections on US-India nuclear deal overcome
Senators have agreed to vote Wednesday on a U.S.-India nuclear cooperation accord, clearing a major hurdle that had been blocking consideration of the landmark pact that would overturn 30 years of U.S. nonproliferation policy.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid told his colleagues late Tuesday that the Senate also would consider two amendments seeking to deal with the U.S. reaction should India conduct another atomic test. The amendments reflect an attempt to make sure U.S. nuclear exports do not help boost India's nuclear weapons program.
The accord would allow American civilian nuclear trade with India in exchange for safeguards and U.N. inspections at India's civilian nuclear plants. Military plants would be off-limits. Opponents say the Senate has failed to examine carefully a deal that could spark an atomic arms race in Asia.
The accord, a top priority of President Bush, enjoys wide support from senior lawmakers in both parties and was approved by the House on Saturday.
It had stalled in the Senate, and Reid's announcement Tuesday came after behind-the-scenes wrangling designed to ease the qualms of at least one unidentified senator who had blocked a vote.
Lawmakers working to deal with a financial crisis gripping the United States are eager to leave Washington to campaign for the November elections. Reid ratcheted up pressure for quick action on the India deal, suggesting that he might call senators back to work in about two weeks for a vote on the accord if objections were not cleared up soon.
A draft of a Senate amendment obtained by The Associated Press from an e-mail to senators would require the U.S. president, should India detonate a nuclear weapon, to certify that no American technology or material supplied under the accord was used in the explosion. Another draft amendment would stop U.S. nuclear trade if India should detonate a nuclear device.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said she hoped to get the deal settled.
"It would be a way to solidify what has been an extraordinary period in which U.S.-Indian relations have reached the kind of deepening that is really appropriate for two of the world's largest and great democracies," she told reporters at the State Department.
The deal received a boost this month when the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group of countries that supply nuclear material and technology agreed to lift a ban on civilian nuclear trade with India.
Critics say the plan would allow India to use the extra nuclear fuel that the deal would provide to free up domestic uranium for its weapons program
India built its bombs outside the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which allows civil nuclear trade in exchange for a pledge from nations not to pursue nuclear weapons. The country has faced a nuclear trade ban since its first atomic test in 1974.
Sharon Squassoni, a nonproliferation analyst with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said, "This kind of congressional approval is a farce, and the reason why it's happening is the tremendous political pressure being exerted by the Bush administration on behalf of the Indian government" and Indian-American political action committees.
(Source: AP)
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid told his colleagues late Tuesday that the Senate also would consider two amendments seeking to deal with the U.S. reaction should India conduct another atomic test. The amendments reflect an attempt to make sure U.S. nuclear exports do not help boost India's nuclear weapons program.
The accord would allow American civilian nuclear trade with India in exchange for safeguards and U.N. inspections at India's civilian nuclear plants. Military plants would be off-limits. Opponents say the Senate has failed to examine carefully a deal that could spark an atomic arms race in Asia.
The accord, a top priority of President Bush, enjoys wide support from senior lawmakers in both parties and was approved by the House on Saturday.
It had stalled in the Senate, and Reid's announcement Tuesday came after behind-the-scenes wrangling designed to ease the qualms of at least one unidentified senator who had blocked a vote.
Lawmakers working to deal with a financial crisis gripping the United States are eager to leave Washington to campaign for the November elections. Reid ratcheted up pressure for quick action on the India deal, suggesting that he might call senators back to work in about two weeks for a vote on the accord if objections were not cleared up soon.
A draft of a Senate amendment obtained by The Associated Press from an e-mail to senators would require the U.S. president, should India detonate a nuclear weapon, to certify that no American technology or material supplied under the accord was used in the explosion. Another draft amendment would stop U.S. nuclear trade if India should detonate a nuclear device.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said she hoped to get the deal settled.
"It would be a way to solidify what has been an extraordinary period in which U.S.-Indian relations have reached the kind of deepening that is really appropriate for two of the world's largest and great democracies," she told reporters at the State Department.
The deal received a boost this month when the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group of countries that supply nuclear material and technology agreed to lift a ban on civilian nuclear trade with India.
Critics say the plan would allow India to use the extra nuclear fuel that the deal would provide to free up domestic uranium for its weapons program
India built its bombs outside the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which allows civil nuclear trade in exchange for a pledge from nations not to pursue nuclear weapons. The country has faced a nuclear trade ban since its first atomic test in 1974.
Sharon Squassoni, a nonproliferation analyst with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said, "This kind of congressional approval is a farce, and the reason why it's happening is the tremendous political pressure being exerted by the Bush administration on behalf of the Indian government" and Indian-American political action committees.
(Source: AP)
Monday, September 29, 2008
US House approves US-India Nuclear deal
Today, the U.S. House of Representatives gave final approval to the U.S.-India Civilian Nuclear Cooperation Initiative with a bipartisan vote of 298-117.
The bill must now be approved by the Senate. There are already reports that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice may fly to New Delhi shortly to complete the process.
Approval of this is expected to open up business opportunities for companies such as General Electric, Westinghouse, Bechtel and Stone/Webster as India prepare to spend up to $100 billion on new nuclear power plants. French and Russian companies are also likely to compete for this business.
There’s been a lot of malarkey about the agreement. Some of this malarkey comes from the democratic congressman from Massachussetts, Rep Ed Malarkey, eh Markey. He argued incredibly that ” opposing the bill did not mean opposing India. This is a debate about Iran. This is a debate about North Korea, about Pakistan, about Venezuela, about any other country in the world that harbors the goal of acquiring nuclear weapons.”
The deal has made it through Congress so far in just a few weeks since the Nuclear Supplier Group gave the nod in early September. But AFP reports today that “The agreement had long been stalled in Congress,”. It seems that both Rep Markey and the AFP are distracted by the financial meltdown.
(Source: Khabrein.info)
US House backs India nuclear deal
The US House of Representatives has voted in favour of a landmark nuclear deal between India and the US.
The agreement now goes to the Senate for final approval, before President George W Bush signs it into law.
India PM Manmohan Singh, who was in New York for the UN General Assembly, has said India is close to securing a "new status" in the world nuclear order.
India says the agreement is vital for it to meet its energy demands. Critics say it creates a dangerous precedent.
They say the deal allows India to expand its nuclear power industry without requiring it to sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as other nations must.
Under its terms, India would get access to US civilian nuclear technology and fuel.
In return, Delhi would open its civilian nuclear facilities to inspection - but its nuclear weapons sites would remain off-limits.
Race against time
The House passed by the agreement 298-117 votes. Reports say it is likely to go for a final approval to the Senate this week.
"I am happy that one hurdle has been crossed, but it is not the end of the Congressional process and we need to wait for the final outcome," Manmohan Singh told reporters.
US President George W Bush urged the Senate to "quickly" vote on the deal before it adjourns before October.
"Signing this bipartisan bill will help strengthen our partnership with India," he said in a statement.
The US restricted nuclear co-operation with India after it tested a nuclear weapon in 1974.
"India will be liberated from the constraints of technology denial of 34 years," Mr Singh was quoted as saying in a statement issued by his office.
"The civilian nuclear cooperation is in the interest of India, in the interest of the US and in the interest of the world at large," he said.
Correspondents say it will be a race against time if the two sides sign the deal - first agreed three years ago - and regarded as a key foreign policy priority for both the Indian and US governments.
Earlier this month, the Nuclear Suppliers Group lifted a ban that had stopped India from getting access to the global nuclear market.
(Source: BBC)
The agreement now goes to the Senate for final approval, before President George W Bush signs it into law.
India PM Manmohan Singh, who was in New York for the UN General Assembly, has said India is close to securing a "new status" in the world nuclear order.
India says the agreement is vital for it to meet its energy demands. Critics say it creates a dangerous precedent.
They say the deal allows India to expand its nuclear power industry without requiring it to sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as other nations must.
Under its terms, India would get access to US civilian nuclear technology and fuel.
In return, Delhi would open its civilian nuclear facilities to inspection - but its nuclear weapons sites would remain off-limits.
Race against time
The House passed by the agreement 298-117 votes. Reports say it is likely to go for a final approval to the Senate this week.
"I am happy that one hurdle has been crossed, but it is not the end of the Congressional process and we need to wait for the final outcome," Manmohan Singh told reporters.
US President George W Bush urged the Senate to "quickly" vote on the deal before it adjourns before October.
"Signing this bipartisan bill will help strengthen our partnership with India," he said in a statement.
The US restricted nuclear co-operation with India after it tested a nuclear weapon in 1974.
"India will be liberated from the constraints of technology denial of 34 years," Mr Singh was quoted as saying in a statement issued by his office.
"The civilian nuclear cooperation is in the interest of India, in the interest of the US and in the interest of the world at large," he said.
Correspondents say it will be a race against time if the two sides sign the deal - first agreed three years ago - and regarded as a key foreign policy priority for both the Indian and US governments.
Earlier this month, the Nuclear Suppliers Group lifted a ban that had stopped India from getting access to the global nuclear market.
(Source: BBC)
Friday, September 26, 2008
Prospects for nuclear deal uncertain in Congress
A landmark agreement on civilian nuclear cooperation between India and the U.S. has been a high priority for President Bush and the Indian government, but time is running out as lawmakers wrap up this year's session to campaign for the November elections.
And the bill faces long odds.
A Senate committee overwhelmingly approved a bill on the nuclear agreement this week, but the measure has not been presented to the full Senate or in the House.
In remarks at the start of an Oval Office meeting Thursday with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Bush said the deal is an example of how the U.S.-India relationship has changed for the better during his administration.
"It has taken a lot of work on both our parts, a lot of courage on your part," Bush said, looking toward Singh. "Of course we want the agreement to satisfy you. We have to get it out of our Congress. We are working hard to get it passed as quickly as possible."
The pact would allow the U.S. to sell nuclear materials to a country that has tested nuclear weapons but has refused to sign international treaties designed to limit the illicit spread of such materials. The accord would reverse three decades of U.S. policy by shipping atomic fuel to India in return for international inspections of India's civilian, but not its military, reactors.
India has faced a nuclear trade ban since its first atomic test in 1974.
In a sign of the difficulty facing the measure, Rep. Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said the deal poses unacceptable risks to U.S. national security.
"Unbelievably, if India tests a new nuclear weapon, the deal does not cut off their supply," Markey said in a statement.
Supporters had hoped to have it included in a broader spending bill Wednesday, but the legislation passed the House without it.
The House and the Senate would have to pass the bill and send it to Bush for the deal to go through before a new administration takes office in January. The last-minute attempt comes as Congress debates the bank bailout plan and rushes to pass numerous important measures before shutting down for the year.
This month, the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group of countries that supply nuclear material and technology agreed to lift the ban on civilian nuclear trade with India, the last necessary step before Congress could consider the deal. The ban was imposed because India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and has developed nuclear weapons.
The administration has warned that failure to ratify the deal would keep U.S. companies from doing business in India's multibillion-dollar nuclear energy sector.
(Source: AP)
And the bill faces long odds.
A Senate committee overwhelmingly approved a bill on the nuclear agreement this week, but the measure has not been presented to the full Senate or in the House.
In remarks at the start of an Oval Office meeting Thursday with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Bush said the deal is an example of how the U.S.-India relationship has changed for the better during his administration.
"It has taken a lot of work on both our parts, a lot of courage on your part," Bush said, looking toward Singh. "Of course we want the agreement to satisfy you. We have to get it out of our Congress. We are working hard to get it passed as quickly as possible."
The pact would allow the U.S. to sell nuclear materials to a country that has tested nuclear weapons but has refused to sign international treaties designed to limit the illicit spread of such materials. The accord would reverse three decades of U.S. policy by shipping atomic fuel to India in return for international inspections of India's civilian, but not its military, reactors.
India has faced a nuclear trade ban since its first atomic test in 1974.
In a sign of the difficulty facing the measure, Rep. Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said the deal poses unacceptable risks to U.S. national security.
"Unbelievably, if India tests a new nuclear weapon, the deal does not cut off their supply," Markey said in a statement.
Supporters had hoped to have it included in a broader spending bill Wednesday, but the legislation passed the House without it.
The House and the Senate would have to pass the bill and send it to Bush for the deal to go through before a new administration takes office in January. The last-minute attempt comes as Congress debates the bank bailout plan and rushes to pass numerous important measures before shutting down for the year.
This month, the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group of countries that supply nuclear material and technology agreed to lift the ban on civilian nuclear trade with India, the last necessary step before Congress could consider the deal. The ban was imposed because India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and has developed nuclear weapons.
The administration has warned that failure to ratify the deal would keep U.S. companies from doing business in India's multibillion-dollar nuclear energy sector.
(Source: AP)
Thursday, September 25, 2008
India PM to meet Bush as Congress weighs nuke deal
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is visiting Washington to rally support in Congress for a civilian nuclear cooperation agreement reached long ago with the Bush administration.
Congressional approval of the deal has been in question as proponents scrambled to win approval before lawmakers wrap up this year's session to campaign for the November elections. Singh was meeting with President Bush at the White House late Thursday as the administration pressed lawmakers to approve a deal that has been a high priority for the U.S. and Indian governments.
A Senate committee overwhelmingly approved a bill on the nuclear agreement this week, but the measure has not been presented to the full Senate or in the House.
Supporters had hoped to have it included in a broader spending bill Wednesday, but the legislation passed the House without it. Lawmakers on Thursday were looking for other ways to win approval.
The House and the Senate would have to pass the bill and send it to Bush for the deal to go through before a new administration takes office in January.
The last-minute attempt to finish the nuclear cooperation agreement comes as Congress debates a critical bank bailout plan and rushes to pass numerous important measures before shutting down for the year.
The Bush administration needs the Democratic-controlled Congress' help to overcome a law that says Congress may not ratify the accord sooner than 30 working days after receiving it. The Bush administration rushed the deal to Congress on Sept. 10, but that left insufficient time for ratification before the election break without a change in the law.
This month, the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group of countries that supply nuclear material and technology agreed to lift the ban on civilian nuclear trade with India, the last necessary step before Congress could consider the deal. The ban was imposed because India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and has developed nuclear weapons.
The administration has warned that failure to ratify the deal would keep U.S. companies from doing business in India's multibillion-dollar nuclear energy sector.
The accord would reverse three decades of U.S. policy by shipping atomic fuel to India in return for international inspections of India's civilian, but not its military, reactors. India has refused to sign the non-proliferation treaty or other such agreements and has faced a nuclear trade ban since its first atomic test in 1974.
(Source: AP)
Congressional approval of the deal has been in question as proponents scrambled to win approval before lawmakers wrap up this year's session to campaign for the November elections. Singh was meeting with President Bush at the White House late Thursday as the administration pressed lawmakers to approve a deal that has been a high priority for the U.S. and Indian governments.
A Senate committee overwhelmingly approved a bill on the nuclear agreement this week, but the measure has not been presented to the full Senate or in the House.
Supporters had hoped to have it included in a broader spending bill Wednesday, but the legislation passed the House without it. Lawmakers on Thursday were looking for other ways to win approval.
The House and the Senate would have to pass the bill and send it to Bush for the deal to go through before a new administration takes office in January.
The last-minute attempt to finish the nuclear cooperation agreement comes as Congress debates a critical bank bailout plan and rushes to pass numerous important measures before shutting down for the year.
The Bush administration needs the Democratic-controlled Congress' help to overcome a law that says Congress may not ratify the accord sooner than 30 working days after receiving it. The Bush administration rushed the deal to Congress on Sept. 10, but that left insufficient time for ratification before the election break without a change in the law.
This month, the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group of countries that supply nuclear material and technology agreed to lift the ban on civilian nuclear trade with India, the last necessary step before Congress could consider the deal. The ban was imposed because India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and has developed nuclear weapons.
The administration has warned that failure to ratify the deal would keep U.S. companies from doing business in India's multibillion-dollar nuclear energy sector.
The accord would reverse three decades of U.S. policy by shipping atomic fuel to India in return for international inspections of India's civilian, but not its military, reactors. India has refused to sign the non-proliferation treaty or other such agreements and has faced a nuclear trade ban since its first atomic test in 1974.
(Source: AP)
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
With nuclear deal a step away, Manmohan heads to New York
With the US pulling out all stops to get the Congressional nod for the India-US nuclear deal in a couple of days, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Tuesday left for New York where he will address the UN General Assembly before he meets US President George W. Bush in Washington.
Manmohan Singh and Bush will not sign the 123 bilateral nuclear pact when they meet in the White House Thursday, but there is a strong likelihood that the two principal architects of the India-US nuclear entente will formally announce the consummation of the deal, leaving the actual signing for a later stage.
The business committee of the US Congress is likely to take a decision Tuesday on waiving the mandatory condition of the 30-day period for the legislation to be considered by Congress. It will also decide if there will be a separate or joint resolution of Congress to approve the 123 pact by an up and down vote.
Besides the nuclear deal which will be in the global eye, Manmohan Singh and Bush will focus on taking India-US ties to new heights by focusing on expanding cooperation across a wide spectrum of areas, including business, agriculture education and high-technology trade.
With business on mind, Manmohan Singh, the economist credited with opening India's inward-looking economy in 1991, will meet World Bank president Robert B Zoellick and CEOs of leading American companies at a lunch to be hosted by India's ambassador to the US Ronen Sen.
Looking beyond the Bush and White House, he will also meet Republican presidential candidate John McCain and have a telephone chat with Democratic contender Barack Obama to sustain bipartisan momentum for bolstering India-US ties.
Although his meeting with Bush and the fate of the nuclear deal will hog global limelight, Manmohan Singh has a substantial agenda in New York before he goes to Washington.
With the NSG waiver brining India out of the nuclear cold after a gap of over three decades, Manmohan Singh will harness India's added global weight to press for "collective and multilateral approach" to global problems ranging from food and energy security to terrorism, the UN reforms and nuclear disarmament.
This will be his second address to the UN General Assembly Friday. He skipped the UNGA in 2006 and 2007.
As Pakistan sinks into a downward spiral of violence and anarchy due to militancy in its tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, his meeting with Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari Wednesday will be keenly watched at home as well as in Washington which has lately stepped up pressure on Islamabad to deliver on the war against terror.
With terror blasts in Delhi fresh in mind, Manmohan Singh is set to convey a strong pointed message to Zardari to end cross-border terror and ceasefire violations that have cast a shadow on bilateral ties. It will also be an opportunity for Manmohan Singh to gauge Zardari's clout in the new dispensation in Pakistan that seems to be torn between multiple centres of power in that country.
In yet another important sideshow on the sidelines of the UNGA, Manmohan Singh will meet Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao Wednesday - the first meeting between the two leaders since reports of Beijing's negative role in the Nuclear Supply Group (NSG) cast its shadow on ties between the two countries. With Beijing sending positive feelers, India does not want to stretch the NSG issue further and will be keen to focus on greater cooperation on global issues.
The prime minister will also meet British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Italian President Silvio Berlusconi and Namibia's President Hifikepunye Pohamba on the sidelines of the UNGA.
(Source: Economic Times, India)
Manmohan Singh and Bush will not sign the 123 bilateral nuclear pact when they meet in the White House Thursday, but there is a strong likelihood that the two principal architects of the India-US nuclear entente will formally announce the consummation of the deal, leaving the actual signing for a later stage.
The business committee of the US Congress is likely to take a decision Tuesday on waiving the mandatory condition of the 30-day period for the legislation to be considered by Congress. It will also decide if there will be a separate or joint resolution of Congress to approve the 123 pact by an up and down vote.
Besides the nuclear deal which will be in the global eye, Manmohan Singh and Bush will focus on taking India-US ties to new heights by focusing on expanding cooperation across a wide spectrum of areas, including business, agriculture education and high-technology trade.
With business on mind, Manmohan Singh, the economist credited with opening India's inward-looking economy in 1991, will meet World Bank president Robert B Zoellick and CEOs of leading American companies at a lunch to be hosted by India's ambassador to the US Ronen Sen.
Looking beyond the Bush and White House, he will also meet Republican presidential candidate John McCain and have a telephone chat with Democratic contender Barack Obama to sustain bipartisan momentum for bolstering India-US ties.
Although his meeting with Bush and the fate of the nuclear deal will hog global limelight, Manmohan Singh has a substantial agenda in New York before he goes to Washington.
With the NSG waiver brining India out of the nuclear cold after a gap of over three decades, Manmohan Singh will harness India's added global weight to press for "collective and multilateral approach" to global problems ranging from food and energy security to terrorism, the UN reforms and nuclear disarmament.
This will be his second address to the UN General Assembly Friday. He skipped the UNGA in 2006 and 2007.
As Pakistan sinks into a downward spiral of violence and anarchy due to militancy in its tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, his meeting with Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari Wednesday will be keenly watched at home as well as in Washington which has lately stepped up pressure on Islamabad to deliver on the war against terror.
With terror blasts in Delhi fresh in mind, Manmohan Singh is set to convey a strong pointed message to Zardari to end cross-border terror and ceasefire violations that have cast a shadow on bilateral ties. It will also be an opportunity for Manmohan Singh to gauge Zardari's clout in the new dispensation in Pakistan that seems to be torn between multiple centres of power in that country.
In yet another important sideshow on the sidelines of the UNGA, Manmohan Singh will meet Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao Wednesday - the first meeting between the two leaders since reports of Beijing's negative role in the Nuclear Supply Group (NSG) cast its shadow on ties between the two countries. With Beijing sending positive feelers, India does not want to stretch the NSG issue further and will be keen to focus on greater cooperation on global issues.
The prime minister will also meet British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Italian President Silvio Berlusconi and Namibia's President Hifikepunye Pohamba on the sidelines of the UNGA.
(Source: Economic Times, India)
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
US pursuing Indian arms deals in return for nuclear 'waiver'
THE US is looking to secure defence contracts with India worth billions of dollars in return for its support in helping the country secure a nuclear waiver earlier this month which ends its 34-year-old global isolation while retaining its strategic weapons capability.
US officials have indicated that Washington expects "reciprocity" in weapons purchases and enhanced strategic ties for helping India secure the one-off waiver earlier this month from the Nuclear Suppliers' Group that controls nuclear trade worldwide.
"I would expect our [joint] capacity to move forward in complex areas," said David Mulford, the US ambassador to Delhi, last week. Establishing civil nuclear ties will doubtlessly have a "positive knock-on" effect on defence and related sensitive matters, he added.
Under US prompting, the NSG has permitted India to conduct civil nuclear commerce without requiring it to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty that governs the global atomic weapons regime, as well as retaining its nuclear arsenal.
The waiver unofficially elevates India's status to that of a nuclear weapons state on par with the permanent five UN Security Council members and nuclear weapon powers - China, France, Russia, the UK and the US.
"Other than obvious commercial interests, which are important, the US is keen to invest militarily in India which it believes with Washington's help and hardware can emerge as a counterweight to China's growing might," said retired Indian army lieutenant general VK Kapoor.
Washington is seeking a credible ally in a region where its hold is becoming tenuous. It is anxious for closer ties with India and equipment sales is a vital link in that chain, he added.
Over the next few months India is expected to acquire eight maritime reconnaissance aircraft from Boeing for more than $2 billion (€1.4 billion), varied equipment for its special forces and is considering the purchase of six additional Lockheed-Martin-built C 130J Hercules transport aircraft expected to cost about $1 billion.
Washington is also backing the $10 billion contract for 126 multi-role combat fighters for which Boeing and Lockheed Martin are competing alongside Russian and European manufacturers.
US companies are also bidding to supply India with more than 220 military helicopters to replace ageing platforms in contracts estimated at about $2 billion.
And the prospect of Delhi acquiring Patriot and Harpoon missiles was discussed during Indian defence minister AK Antony's visit to Washington that ended at the weekend.
India is also expected to finalise negotiations with the US on the long-pending logistics support agreement that permits the two militaries reciprocal use of facilities for maintenance, servicing, communications, refuelling and medical care, bringing the two defence establishments closer.
(Source: Irish Times)
US officials have indicated that Washington expects "reciprocity" in weapons purchases and enhanced strategic ties for helping India secure the one-off waiver earlier this month from the Nuclear Suppliers' Group that controls nuclear trade worldwide.
"I would expect our [joint] capacity to move forward in complex areas," said David Mulford, the US ambassador to Delhi, last week. Establishing civil nuclear ties will doubtlessly have a "positive knock-on" effect on defence and related sensitive matters, he added.
Under US prompting, the NSG has permitted India to conduct civil nuclear commerce without requiring it to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty that governs the global atomic weapons regime, as well as retaining its nuclear arsenal.
The waiver unofficially elevates India's status to that of a nuclear weapons state on par with the permanent five UN Security Council members and nuclear weapon powers - China, France, Russia, the UK and the US.
"Other than obvious commercial interests, which are important, the US is keen to invest militarily in India which it believes with Washington's help and hardware can emerge as a counterweight to China's growing might," said retired Indian army lieutenant general VK Kapoor.
Washington is seeking a credible ally in a region where its hold is becoming tenuous. It is anxious for closer ties with India and equipment sales is a vital link in that chain, he added.
Over the next few months India is expected to acquire eight maritime reconnaissance aircraft from Boeing for more than $2 billion (€1.4 billion), varied equipment for its special forces and is considering the purchase of six additional Lockheed-Martin-built C 130J Hercules transport aircraft expected to cost about $1 billion.
Washington is also backing the $10 billion contract for 126 multi-role combat fighters for which Boeing and Lockheed Martin are competing alongside Russian and European manufacturers.
US companies are also bidding to supply India with more than 220 military helicopters to replace ageing platforms in contracts estimated at about $2 billion.
And the prospect of Delhi acquiring Patriot and Harpoon missiles was discussed during Indian defence minister AK Antony's visit to Washington that ended at the weekend.
India is also expected to finalise negotiations with the US on the long-pending logistics support agreement that permits the two militaries reciprocal use of facilities for maintenance, servicing, communications, refuelling and medical care, bringing the two defence establishments closer.
(Source: Irish Times)
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Japan signals approval of India-US nuclear deal
Japan on Tuesday signalled it would approve a nuclear energy deal between India and the United States, raising the chances that the controversial pact will come into force.The 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group, which controls the global flow of civilian atomic exports, is expected to meet Thursday in Vienna on the nuclear deal. Objections by any nation would scuttle the pact.
Japan, the only nation to have suffered atomic attack, had been a major holdout as it pressed for India to sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
But Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said: "It may be biased to view the deal as going against nuclear non-proliferation efforts."
"For example, the issue of global warming has been getting serious in recent years and CO2 emissions from emerging nations such as China and India are becoming a problem," said Machimura, the government's spokesman.
"It is important that India proceeds with nuclear power generation as clean energy."
The deal would give India access to international nuclear technology after being shut out for decades for refusing to sign the NPT.
Anti-nuclear campaigners have petitioned Japan to block the pact, a key priority for Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who nearly saw the collapse of his government over the issue.
The UN's atomic watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), has approved an agreement to inspect some Indian facilities. Singh's former communist allies had argued that inspections would violate Indian sovereignty.
Machimura said the IAEA's supervision of Indian nuclear facilities "can lead to the strengthening of the NPT."
Australia, another country seen as a potential opponent of the India-US nuclear deal, said last week it would not stand in the way.
But the Nuclear Suppliers Group also includes a number of European countries, including in Scandinavia, that are strongly committed to the NPT.
Japan, like the United States, has been seeking a closer alliance with India.
"Japan, which has suffered atomic bomb attacks, should take the initiative in blocking the deal," said Sunao Tsuboi, the 83-year-old chairman of the Hiroshima Council of A-Bomb Sufferers Organisations, a group of bomb survivors.
"It would be a pity if Japan only follows US policy irrespective of what is just," he told AFP. "India needs to join the NPT first if it wants civilian use of nuclear energy."
Japan's main labour union Rengo joined anti-nuclear groups in a letter to Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura urging the government to oppose the India-US deal.
"If this kind of exception is approved, that means that the international community accepts India as a nuclear power. That would shake the nonproliferation regime under the NPT," the letter said.
The Nuclear Suppliers Group is being asked to grant an exception for India, which ordinarily would not be allowed nuclear material as it is not part of the NPT.
India declared itself a nuclear power in 1998 with a nuclear test.
It says the NPT, which came into force in 1970, is unfair by confining nuclear weapons in the hands of five powers -- Britain, China, France, the then Soviet Union and the United States.
(Source: AFP)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
