Indo-US nuclear deal blasts
ahead By Krishnadev Calamur
WASHINGTON - The Senate Foreign Relations
Committee (SFRC) voted Thursday to grant India a
one-time waiver from a US law that prohibits trade
in nuclear know-how with nations that are not
party to international nuclear protocols.
The 16-2 vote moves India, which has
refused to sign onto the nuclear Non-Proliferation
Treaty (NPT), another step closer to US and,
eventually, international nuclear technology. New
Delhi, which relies on imported oil for some 70%
of its energy needs, says it requires nuclear
power to diversify its sources of energy to feed
its rapidly expanding economy.
"I believe
that this agreement is the most important
strategic diplomatic initiative undertaken by
President Bush," Senator
Richard Lugar, chairman of
the Senate panel, said in prepared remarks ahead
of the committee's hearing.
"By concluding
this pact and the far-reaching set of cooperative
agreements that accompany it, the president has
embraced a long-term outlook that seeks to enhance
the core strength of our foreign policy in a way
that will give us new diplomatic options and
improve global stability."
The panel's 10
Republicans all voted for the agreement, while two
Democrats voted against it.
Two amendments
proposed in the panel - one declaring that the
United States was not supporting India's nuclear
weapons program in any way and another that sought
assurances that no other nation would help India
if it carried out an atomic test - were approved.
Both amendments are non-binding on India, the
Press Trust of India reported.
The
committee rejected an amendment requiring US
certification that India would not divert nuclear
fuel for its weapons program.
The nuclear
deal was signed in April 2005 by US President
George W Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh. Under the agreement, India would separate
its civilian and military nuclear facilities and
allow the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA), the United Nations nuclear watchdog, to
inspect only those facilities New Delhi has
designated to be civilian. Military sites will be
off-limits. In exchange, Washington will, after
congressional approval, grant India access to
civilian nuclear technology and fuel.
The
Bush administration is promoting India as a unique
case: a nuclear-weapons country that has stringent
anti-proliferation safeguards and a close ally and
regional power that should be rewarded for its
responsible nuclear policies. Nuclear power, it
says, will help India fill its energy gap and
propel it into a prosperous and stable nation.
"We welcome the strong bipartisan support
for our civil nuclear cooperation initiative shown
by today's 16-2 vote in the SFRC and Tuesday's
37-5 vote in the House International Relations
Committee," US State Department spokesman Tom
Casey said in a statement. "We appreciate the hard
work done by both committees and their prompt
consideration of the legislation.
"We also
look forward to continuing to work with Congress
in the coming weeks to address a few remaining
issues in the bills, as the progress on this major
US-India initiative continues."
The
administration's position is a remarkable shift in
policy for a nation with which India has
traditionally had frosty ties. New Delhi had a
secret nuclear program that came to fruition in
May 1998 when it tested nuclear devices and
declared itself a nuclear weapons state. US
sanctions imposed after the test were lifted after
the start of the "war on terror" in which India is
seen as an ally.
Opponents of the nuclear
deal argue, however, that the pact could allow
India to increase its nuclear weapons arsenal.
They say the United States is giving away too much
to India in exchange for too little and that the
deal virtually destroys the NPT, which has been
the cornerstone of global non-proliferation
efforts through the Cold War because it grants
special treatment to only one nation - India.
"The basic proposal is a fundamental shift
in the way the United States pursues
non-proliferation," Daryl Kimball, executive
director of the Arms Control Association in
Washington, told Asia Times Online. "To what
extent the NPT is damaged because a state that is
not a member receives benefits for nuclear
commerce is yet to be seen. But I am worried the
deal will erode proliferation treaties."
India has refused to sign the NPT and
claims it discriminates against
non-nuclear-weapons states. Britain, China,
France, Russia and the United States are the
recognized nuclear powers; India and Pakistan also
have them and Israel and North Korea are believed
to possess them.
Still, the Senate
committee's vote is merely another step before the
United States can begin supplying civilian nuclear
technology to India.
The vote came just
two days after the House International Relations
Committee voted 37-5 in favor of the plan, which
the Bush administration has been aggressively
pushing. The deal still needs to be approved by
the full House. And once the full Senate votes on
and approves the Senate panel's version of the
bill, the two chambers will meet to reconcile the
document. A final vote is expected by August.
Even after the bill becomes law, India
must clear further hurdles. First, it has to meet
safeguard conditions imposed by the IAEA. The
45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group, which engages
in global nuclear commerce, then has to
unanimously approve the supply of material to a
non-signatory to the NPT. And finally, perhaps
most vital, New Delhi has to reach agreement with
Washington on Section 123 of the US Atomic Energy
Act.
The talks on Section 123 are likely
to prove most contentious on the issue of nuclear
fuel supply guarantees. India wants supplies
guaranteed even if it conducts a nuclear test - a
deal the Atomic Energy Act explicitly forbids.
"If the US and India can't agree on 123,
this whole deal could fall apart," said Kimball, a
leading critic of the nuclear agreement in its
current form. "The Indian government has to be
careful of its present luck. No other country gets
that kind of treatment."
Non-proliferation
advocates fear that making an exception for India
in international rules could open a Pandora's box
for other nations such as Russia and China and
their allies Iran and Pakistan. Indeed, India's
rival, Pakistan, has not hidden its displeasure at
the Indo-US deal and has sought one of its own -
only to be rebuked by US lawmakers.
"If
you want to be treated like India, be a
responsible international actor with regard to
weapons of mass destruction technologies," said
Congressman Gary Ackerman, who voted for the House
panel's version of the deal.
Global
proliferation concerns have grown over North
Korea's and Iran's nuclear programs and the
revelation that Abdul Qadeer Khan, the father of
Pakistan's nuclear program, was at the center of
global nuclear proliferation network. Another
major leak, it is feared, would blow the NPT out
of the water.
"One exception in
international rules becomes the norm," Kimball
said. "We are concerned other countries will be
less interested in protecting other aspects of
proliferation protocols."
Krishnadev
Calamur is deputy international editor at
United Press International.
(Copyright
2006 Asia Times Online Ltd. All rights reserved.
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