PARIS: After the flurry of activity induced by the visit of French President Jacques Chirac and US President George W Bush, things have slowed down considerably between India and its international interlocutors on nuclear cooperation.

Negotiations on a bilateral nuclear cooperation agreement between India and France have stumbled on a phrase. France, in its draft document sent to India even before the visit of Chirac in February, said the proposed nuclear cooperation would be for “peaceful, non-explosive purposes”.

Indian negotiators refused to include this in the final document, which has stalled talks. French officials said India was yet to revert back to them to restart the negotiations. India had also refused to include phrases in the document that referred to NSG guidelines at the time, because this was just before the Bush visit.

In the event, the Franco-Indian nuclear cooperation document remained a declaration of intent, giving the distinct impression that Paris would move with Delhi only after the deal with the US was signed, sealed and delivered. There is also great deal of interest here in the content of the 123 agreement that India will be signing with the US.

The US presented a draft of the agreement to India and there have already been a crossing of swords on a similar contentious clause - that the nuclear cooperation between the US and India would be off if India conducted nuclear tests again.

The French and American caveats in both agreements are remarkably similar, and this is a clause that sources here say is likely to appear again and again in India’s nuclear dealings with other countries. France is more likely to keep lines of negotiation open in the event that this becomes a reality. In fact, though the Indo-US bilateral agreement will be devoid of this particular demand, sources here say they expect the “testing clause” to be part of the US Congress resolution, if and when it happens.

To the US, India has been stressing that its commitments would be confined to the letter and spirit of the July 18 agreement. To other members of the NSG, India is working the diplomatic wheels overtime to assure them that any nuclear cooperation would only be for civilian use and in reactors that would be under international safeguards.

According to sources, the crux of the NSG members’ concerns regarding the India agreement is focussed on two issues - the diversion of imported equipment, materials and technology from India’s civil to nuclear programmes, and second, the apparent failure of the nuclear deal to curb the production of fissile material.

The latter is a bit of a smokescreen, even among non-proliferation oriented countries. But it’s a strong demand from the non-proliferation lobby, which have been particularly vocal on India committing itself to the fissile material cut-off treaty (FMCT). The Chinese government recently reaffirmed its commitment to an “early negotiation” of FMCT, even though it is fairly well known among nuclear policy circles that Beijing is not really interested in FMCT.

A subterranean debate is under way in the US where the diplomats are ready to begin talks on FMCT, but Pentagon remains reluctant.

In the interests of pushing the nuclear deal forward, India is likely to make a Beijing style statement of intent regarding restarting FMCT negotiations soon. Sources here expect the US to launch an attempt to get the world’s nuclear nations together on the subject in Geneva. On the other hand, India is pushing the NSG and IAEA hard to work out an “assured fuel supplies” agreement.

This was a major concern with India when it debated whether to put its civilian nuclear reactors under perpetual safeguards.

The US has agreed to guarantee fuel for India’s reactors. French officials here said they were working with the IAEA to structure a three-tier fuel supply system, in case political conditions prompt one of India’s international suppliers to cut off fuel supplies.—By arrangement with The Times of India