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2 India as a nuclear pariah - or
partner By Sudha Ramachandran
BANGALORE - While it is India's
negotiations with the United States on the
civilian nuclear deal that has captured media
attention over the past 19 months, no less
important has been New Delhi's diplomacy to get
the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) on board in its
effort to break out of its three-decade-long
nuclear isolation. Indian officials have been
seeking support from NSG members to exempt India
from nuclear export controls.
Two weeks
ago, former foreign secretary Shyam Saran, who is
currently the Indian government's chief
interlocutor with the US on
the
civilian nuclear deal, was in Australia and New
Zealand - both members of the NSG - to persuade
them to support India's case.
Australia,
which commands nearly 40% of the world's known
uranium reserves, has been a vociferous supporter
of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and
was among the fiercest critics of India's nuclear
tests. But it seems to have become more open to
allowing nuclear trade with India. Ahead of
Saran's visit, Australian Prime Minister John
Howard said that while a formal decision to scrap
its policy with regard to providing India with
uranium had not been made, he "wouldn't rule out a
change".
After negotiation with the
Australians, Saran noted that Australia's
"positive stance" was now "in a sense, confirmed",
indicating that it is coming around to backing
India.
NSG guidelines forbid nuclear trade
with India, a non-signatory to the NPT. India is
seeking to get these restrictions lifted so that
it can access nuclear fuel and equipment. A
lifting of these restrictions is required not only
for India and the US to engage in civilian nuclear
trade but also for India to do so with other
countries.
Indian and US officials have
began negotiating details of the 123 Agreement
("123" refers to Section 123 of the US Atomic
Energy Act of 1954). The 123 Agreement is the
bilateral pact that will define the legal and
administrative nature of civilian nuclear
cooperation between India and the US.
Since NSG decisions require consensus,
India will have to get the nod of all of its 45
members if it wants the embargo lifted, hence the
all-out diplomatic efforts to persuade NSG members
to change their rules prohibiting trade with
India.
Several NSG members believe that
lifting restrictions on nuclear trade with India
amounts to giving it a free pass when it has
refused to sign up to global nuclear
non-proliferation regimes such as the NPT. They
don't want to be seen to be rewarding India for
not conforming. They want India to sign on to the
NPT first.
India's argument is that it has
an "impeccable record on non-proliferation" even
though it is not a signatory to the NPT.
Indian diplomats say they have "covered
much ground" in convincing NSG members over the
past year. "While some countries didn't need
convincing as they were already in favor of
engaging in nuclear commerce with India, others
have softened their stance considerably," an
official in the Ministry of External Affairs told
Asia Times Online.
The strongest
proponents of revision of global nuclear rules in
favor of India are the Western nuclear powers -
the US, Russia, France and the United Kingdom.
France and Russia had in fact been pushing for
rewriting the rules to allow nuclear trade with
India long before the US got into the game in
2005. Incidentally, these four countries are
engaged in hectic lobbying for revising NSG rules
in favor of India. All four are eyeing a share in
the big business deals that will open up once the
nuclear trade embargo on India is
lifted.
The prospect of business deals has
prompted several others to soften their stance.
China and Australia, which were initially bitterly
opposed to the India-US deal, do not seem averse
to engaging in nuclear cooperation with India.
China has not clarified whether or not it will
support the lifting of NSG nuclear-trade
restrictions on India.
But in a joint
declaration issued at the end of President Hu
Jintao's visit to India last November, India and
China agreed "to
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