US seals nuclear deal with India
Sunday, 29 July 2007
Edward Luce from Washington and Jo Johnson from New Delhi, FT Syndication Service
The US has announced it has taken the unprecedented step of agreeing to the creation of a civil nuclear enrichment facility in India even though India is not a signatory to the international nuclear non-proliferation treaty.
The deal, which has taken almost two years to finalise after it was announced by Manmohan Singh and George W.?Bush in Washington, is likely to face tough questions from the US Congress, which now has to approve it.
In a statement on Friday President Bush said that the deal marked an important step in "deepening our strategic partnership with India - a vital world leader".
Nicholas Burns, the US undersecretary of state, who led the often difficult negotiations with his Indian counterparts, said it removed the "fundamental roadblock" in the way of a full global partnership between the world's largest democracy and its richest.
Mr Burns denied the deal would act as an incentive for other countries to develop nuclear weapons outside the NPT. He said that Iran was "inside the NPT but cheating" whereas India was outside the NPT but had a good record of non-proliferation. "This agreement sends a message to outlaw regimes such as Iran that if you behave responsibly you will not be penalised," said Mr Burns.
India denied that the agreement, which non-proliferation hawks say will free up indigenous Indian fissile material for use in the country's atomic weapons programme, would contribute to an arms race in south Asia, destabilise the balance of power in the region and potentially prompt a copycat deal between Pakistan and China.
"If we needed additionalities in terms of our stockpile, we didn't need to go down this route to do it.?.?.?This agreement was not an excuse to enhance our strategic capabilities. The earlier countries forget about that [idea] the better," N.K.?Narayanan, India's national security adviser told reporters in New Delhi.
According to Indian negotiators, the agreement makes no explicit reference to the US Hyde Act, which allows the US to demand the return of all fuel and technology supplied under the deal in the event that India tests a nuclear weapon.
Shiv Shankar Menon, the Indian foreign secretary, said: "This is an agreement between two governments. It meets the concerns of the two governments. It's not for us to interpret their laws, nor for them to interpret ours." Mr Narayanan added: "We dealt with the administration and we believe they know how far they can go."
However, Mr Burns yesterday said the deal left untouched Washington's rights under the law, which was passed by an overwhelming majority in both houses of Congress last December.
Mr Burns said he hoped the International Atomic Energy Agency and the 45-member nuclear suppliers group, whose agreement is essential for the deal to become operational, would approve it within "several months".
The Indian nuclear establishment, represented in the negotiations by Anil Kakodkar, chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, has set aside its earlier reservations that the deal would compromise New Delhi's strategic weapons programme. Mr Kakodkar said: "I don't think there's any reason for people to be concerned on that front."
The US has announced it has taken the unprecedented step of agreeing to the creation of a civil nuclear enrichment facility in India even though India is not a signatory to the international nuclear non-proliferation treaty.
The deal, which has taken almost two years to finalise after it was announced by Manmohan Singh and George W.?Bush in Washington, is likely to face tough questions from the US Congress, which now has to approve it.
In a statement on Friday President Bush said that the deal marked an important step in "deepening our strategic partnership with India - a vital world leader".
Nicholas Burns, the US undersecretary of state, who led the often difficult negotiations with his Indian counterparts, said it removed the "fundamental roadblock" in the way of a full global partnership between the world's largest democracy and its richest.
Mr Burns denied the deal would act as an incentive for other countries to develop nuclear weapons outside the NPT. He said that Iran was "inside the NPT but cheating" whereas India was outside the NPT but had a good record of non-proliferation. "This agreement sends a message to outlaw regimes such as Iran that if you behave responsibly you will not be penalised," said Mr Burns.
India denied that the agreement, which non-proliferation hawks say will free up indigenous Indian fissile material for use in the country's atomic weapons programme, would contribute to an arms race in south Asia, destabilise the balance of power in the region and potentially prompt a copycat deal between Pakistan and China.
"If we needed additionalities in terms of our stockpile, we didn't need to go down this route to do it.?.?.?This agreement was not an excuse to enhance our strategic capabilities. The earlier countries forget about that [idea] the better," N.K.?Narayanan, India's national security adviser told reporters in New Delhi.
According to Indian negotiators, the agreement makes no explicit reference to the US Hyde Act, which allows the US to demand the return of all fuel and technology supplied under the deal in the event that India tests a nuclear weapon.
Shiv Shankar Menon, the Indian foreign secretary, said: "This is an agreement between two governments. It meets the concerns of the two governments. It's not for us to interpret their laws, nor for them to interpret ours." Mr Narayanan added: "We dealt with the administration and we believe they know how far they can go."
However, Mr Burns yesterday said the deal left untouched Washington's rights under the law, which was passed by an overwhelming majority in both houses of Congress last December.
Mr Burns said he hoped the International Atomic Energy Agency and the 45-member nuclear suppliers group, whose agreement is essential for the deal to become operational, would approve it within "several months".
The Indian nuclear establishment, represented in the negotiations by Anil Kakodkar, chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, has set aside its earlier reservations that the deal would compromise New Delhi's strategic weapons programme. Mr Kakodkar said: "I don't think there's any reason for people to be concerned on that front."