NEW DELHI, March 26: India and the United States held crucial talks here on Monday to settle the details of an agreement reached last year that paves the way for sales of civilian nuclear technology to New Delhi.
The discussions are aimed at hammering out the finer details of a broader pact on nuclear cooperation struck in July 2006 and “iron out key differences,” said an Indian official.
A spokesman for the United States' embassy in New Delhi said the talks, involving delicate issues such as so-called dual use technology which can be used for civil and military aims, would continue through the week.
“They had an initial meeting on Sunday and are continuing talks today. Both sides are hoping to make progress on key issues,” he said.
The US team is led by Richard Stratford, director of the office of Nuclear Energy, Safety and Security in the US State Department, while the Indian side is headed by senior foreign ministry officials S. Jayashankar and Gayatri Kumar.
Differences between India and the United States persist over the re-processing of spent fuel and the assurance of a constant supply of atomic fuel even in the event New Delhi tests nuclear weapons.
Last week, the chief of India's Atomic Energy Commission and top nuclear scientist, Anil Kakodkar warned that India wanted “reprocessing rights up-front.” “Reprocessing is a non-negotiable right,” he was quoted as saying by the Press Trust of India news agency. Another issue raised by Kakodkar was nuclear weapons test limits which India last conducted in May 1998.
The United States had signed, but did not ratify in Congress, a comprehensive test ban treaty. India has not signed the treaty.
“India had declared a unilateral moratorium on nuclear tests, but that cannot become a bilateral legality,” he added.
The India-US civilian nuclear energy deal is the centrepiece of India's new relationship with Washington after decades of Cold War tensions and is part of the energy import-dependent nation's bid to increase its fuel sources to sustain its booming economy.
C.U. Bhaskar of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis said the importance of the deal was two-fold.
“One, it aims to bring India into the loop of global nuclear commerce after decades of isolation and second the deal will have a vital impact on India's efforts to move away from dependency on hydro-carbons,” Bhaskar said.
As part of the deal, New Delhi agreed to separate its civilian and military reactors in exchange for Washington and other nations of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) -- which limits the sale of atomic equipment and technology worldwide to civilian use.Last year, the US Congress gave its go-ahead to the deal allowing Washington to start talks on the bilateral agreement aimed at amending a section of the 1954 US Atomic Energy Act.
Once concluded, the “123 agreement” will need to be passed by the US Congress.
New Delhi also needs the “123 agreement” in place before it can negotiate a bilateral deal with the International Atomic Energy Agency on inspections of nuclear plants that India has designated as civilian units.
India is also talking to NSG members separately to persuade them to drop reservations on selling nuclear fuel and reactors, another Indian official said.
“If the 123 agreement is concluded successfully, it will send a signal to other countries to review their nuclear policy vis-a-vis India,” Bhaskar said.—AFP
