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Thursday, December 3, 2009

INDO U.S CIVIL NUCLEAR AGREEMENT


The Indo-U.S civilian nuclear deal is a bilateral agreement between the United States of America and India on civil nuclear cooperation. The intent of pursing nuclear trade between the two countries for civil purposes was announced in a joint statement made in 2005 by the two heads of government, Prime Minister of India Dr.Manmohan Singh and President of the United States, George W. Bush. The initial framework required India to separate its civil and military nuclear establishments and maintain all civil facilities subject to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards, including periodic inspection.

The agreement had to pass through several intricate procedures and complex stages to before either Government could ratify terms. There was stiff opposition from various quarters that even put to test the stability of Manmohan Singh’s government. The coalition government in India at the time, namely the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), a coming together of the Congress and the Left led by Communist Party of India (M), had serious differences over the civilian nuclear deal: both parties foresaw entirely dissimilar consequences for India’s national interests. Dr Manmohan Singh tirelessly stressed on the agreement’s development facet, which meant an addition of 25,000 MW of nuclear power capacity by 2020. Nuclear power means less oil imports, thereby reducing the foreign exchange burden and mitigating pollution effects on the environment. This also meant that the nuclear energy market saw a business potential of $140 billion, to be lapped up by private and public companies alike over the next 10-15 years.

Obstacles were not limited only to internal differences. Project ‘Smiling Buddha’, India’s nuclear test at Pokhran in early 1974, saw an informal organization being constituted and led by the United States called the Nuclear Suppliers Group ( NSG), an export cartel that took the initiative in support of nuclear non-proliferation by controlling supplies of radio-active substances which could otherwise lead to the burgeoning of nuclear arsenals around the world. The Nuclear Suppliers Group with its 45 member countries did not unanimously agree on export of enriched nuclear substance to India, a nuclear weapon state which was not a signatory to the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty(NPT). There was objection from member countries such as Switzerland, Ireland, Pakistan and Scandinavian countries which sought to include conditions in the waiver granted by the NSG. China too expressed worries over the waiver but quickly retracted its stance stating it had no objection to the agreement being finalized.



Former President and Missile Scientist A.P.J Abdul Kalam

The international community, comprising non-proliferation activists the world over, saw this coming together as tantamount to undermining the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Right from the deal’s inception, they had sought a tightening of the terms and conditions which would otherwise set a precedent for non believers in the NPT to take advantage of this soft stance. Israel’s ambitions of building its own nuclear power plant seem more likely after the Indo-U.S civil nuclear agreement. India’s un-friendly neighbour on the East, Pakistan has been seeking such cooperation from the North American giant but the latter is not as forthcoming.

The U.S Congress was prompt in making necessary amendments to the Hyde Act and certifying the new law. U.S experts say that with India promoting nuclear energy, it would help diminish demand for oil from the Middle East, which would help stabilize prices. Some believe this move by the Bush government was intended to carve a new path for in Indo-U.S relations, making India a worthy partner in the Asian region. India’s ‘deterrence policy’ and status as an emerging global economic power are probably reasons for the number of deviations allowed for this agreement to materialize. Is the agreement truly beneficial to India? The deal states that the United States has the right to terminate export of enriched substances if India test fires a nuclear weapon. Has India inadvertently accepted the NPT without actually signing it? Prime Minister Manmohan Singh threatened to resign if the deal was not ratified by Indian Parliament. His aggressive stance overshadowed his docile nature as he sought what was best for India’s tomorrow. October 10, 2008 went down as a red letter day in the books of history, for the Indo-U.S Civil Nuclear Co-operation Agreement was signed on that day by then Minister for External Affairs, Pranab Mukherjee and US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice in Washington, opening a new chapter in nuclear relations.

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