U.S. President Barack Obama said today he intends to enact his predecessor's nuclear trade agreement with India, Reuters reported (see GSN, Nov. 20).
(Nov. 24) -
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (left) and U.S. President Barack Obama were expected to discuss details of the two nations' civilian nuclear trade deal during their summit today in Washington (Getty Images).
Obama spoke at a press conference at the White House with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
"I reaffirmed to the prime minister my administration's commitment to fully implement the U.S.-India civil nuclear agreement, which will increase American exports and create jobs in both countries," Obama said.
Singh and then-U.S. President George W. Bush in 2005 signed the agreement that would give New Delhi access to U.S. nuclear materials and technology in exchange for opening its civilian nuclear sector to international monitoring. It would give U.S. companies access to the potential $150 billion Indian nuclear energy market, Reuters.
The deal proved controversial, as India is a nuclear-armed nation that operates outside of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.
A number of details have yet to be finalized. India's legislative body still needs to discuss a new bill that would minimize U.S. companies liability in the event of a nuclear accident. A bilateral nuclear fuel reprocessing deal also remains unsigned (Reuters I, Nov. 24).
"We are currently finalizing the details that will make the agreement fully operational,' Singh said yesterday. "This will open a large area of commercial opportunity."
It has been speculated that Obama and Singh during their summit might sign a joint statement on moving the nuclear deal forward (Paul Eckert, Reuters II, Nov. 24).
Singh said India's unblemished nuclear nonproliferation record should allow it to receive dual-use technologies to further develop its nuclear sector, the Indo-Asian News Service reported.
"We are a nuclear-weapon state, but we are a responsible nuclear power," he told CNN. "We have an impeccable record of not having contributed to unauthorized proliferation of these weapons of mass destruction."
"I think India does require greater consideration of the global community," he said (Arun Kumar, Indo-Asian News Service/Thaindian News, Nov. 23).
Meanwhile, India's army head, Gen. Deepak Kapoor, said yesterday that the possibility of nuclear war persists in South Asia, the Hindustan Times reported. Both India and neighboring rival Pakistan possess nuclear weapons.
"The possibility of limited war under a nuclear overhang is still a reality, at least in the Indian subcontinent," Kapoor said at a New Delhi conference on security issues.
Indian Defense Minister A.K. Antony said he was worried that Pakistani nuclear arms might be acquired by rogue elements.
"When there's scarcely any nation that is not affected by terrorism, we stood actively involved in the war on terror," Antony said. "Various developments in the last few months in and around our neighborhood, particularly Afghanistan and Pakistan, thrust South Asia to the center stage of subconventional conflict and instability.
"The threat of nuclear weapons falling into [the] wrong hands remains an area of serious concern and consequences of such a situation are unimaginable," he added (Hindustan Times, Nov. 23).