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| India-Pakistan |
| Lugar threatens âopaqueâ nuclear deal with India |
| 2005-12-07 |
| WASHINGTON - The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee warned Tuesday that Congress would throw out any âopaqueâ plan by the Bush administration to forge unprecedented civilian nuclear cooperation with India. President George W. Bush agreed to give India, which is not a member of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), access to civil nuclear energy technology under a deal he signed with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in July. But India has to first separate its civilian and military nuclear programs and place its nuclear reactors under International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspections. Under US law, the deal also has to be approved by the US Congress. âWhile the Bush Administration has, I think, been very clear in discussions with the Indian government about its expectations, let me emphasize that any Indian plan will have to pass muster with the United States Congress,â Republican Senator Dick Lugar said. âThat should not be viewed as a threat, but rather as a political challenge that must be met,â he told senior Indian policy makers and business leaders gathered in Washington for a US-India Strategic Dialogue. Under the July deal, the United States also agreed to lobby allies in the Nuclear Suppliers Group for full civil nuclear energy cooperation and trade with India. India is seen by Washington at present to be not in compliance with key non-proliferation practices and conventions. New Delhi is at present working on a plan to separate civil and military facilities and programs. Lugar said an âopaque or incomprehensibleâ Indian separation plan would only raise more questions, particularly in the Congress, about Indiaâs intentions. âMore generally, as a politician in the United States Senate charged with guiding this agreement through the legislative branch, I would urge the Indian side to think in maximalist terms and include as many facilities as possible within the scope of the civilian declaration,â he said. âConversely, a minimalist approach will likely only delay consideration of this initiative in the US Congress and in the Nuclear Suppliers Group. Or, at worst, it could result in unfavorable action by one or both bodies,â he said. Lugar wanted the plan to be âcredible, transparent and defensible from a non-proliferation standpoint.â In addition, he said, it should be based on safeguards focusing on tracking nuclear material exported to and used in India subject to IAEA safeguards. âThe separation plan must ensure, and the safeguards must confirm, that US-India civil nuclear cooperation does not in any way assist India in manufacturing nuclear weapons,â he said. âThis is consistent with US obligations under the NPT and with US law.â |
| Posted by:Steve White |