India has begun talks with US companies on purchasing nuclear technology and equipment, although a US –Indian civil nuclear cooperation accord is still awaiting approval in Congress, an Indian official said on Thursday.
India, which has been subject to a nuclear trade ban since it tested its first atomic weapon in 1974, wasted no time in going after sensitive technology after the ban was lifted on Saturday by the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group of countries that supply nuclear material and technology.
The decision by the suppliers’ group was a prerequisite for approval of a separate US -Indian nuclear accord by the US Congress, where time is rapidly running out before an election recess.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna told reporters the “government is taking steps to realise commercial cooperation with foreign partners in this field’’ following the decision by the Nuclear Suppliers Group. Sarna said India has informed the US that it intends to “source state-of-the-art nuclear technologies and facilities’’ and has “already commenced a preliminary dialogue with US companies in this regard.’’
He gave no further details and named no companies, but said actual cooperation would begin only after the agreement comes into effect.
With only about three weeks remaining before Congress is to leave for the rest of the year, the administration needs lawmakers’ help in overcoming a law that requires Congress to wait 30 working days after it receives the deal before ratifying it. Democrats control the House of Representatives and the Senate, and administration officials have been appealing to crucial lawmakers to debate the accord, which would reverse three decades of US non-proliferation policy by allowing nuclear fuel and technology to be sold to India in return for international inspections of India’s civilian reactors.
India, which conducted its most recent nuclear test blast in 1998, has refused to sign non-proliferation agreements. Lawmakers are scheduled to leave Washington at the end of the month to campaign for November elections. Barring passage of legislation to scrap the 30-day waiting period, Congress does not appear to have enough days left to ratify the deal.
Some in Congress are vowing a careful and possibly time-consuming review of US-Indian nuclear negotiations, which could doom the plan’s passage this year. That would leave it in the hands of a new Congress and president, and it is unclear whether it would remain a priority. Both presidential contenders, Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain, have indicated support for the accord, and it has received support among senior lawmakers from both parties.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will meet US President George W Bush on Sept 25 in Washington to discuss the issue, the White House said in a statement on Thursday. India also said it was looking to source nuclear material from other countries. “Government is also moving toward finalising bilateral agreements with other friendly partner countries such as France and Russia,’’ Sarna said.
There are, however, countries that have expressed concerns about trading civilian nuclear technology with India. Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said on Thursday that his country will not consider exporting uranium to any country that has not signed non-proliferation pacts.
“We have a long-standing commitment to the nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty,’’ he told reporters in New Delhi during a five-day visit. Smith leaves for Singapore on Friday. “This is not a policy which is aimed at India.’’
US officials have said selling peaceful nuclear technology to India would bring the country’s atomic programme under closer scrutiny. Critics say it would endanger global efforts to stop the spread of atomic weapons and boost India’s nuclear arsenal.