New Delhi
8 September 2007
The proposed India-United States civil nuclear cooperation
agreement has put the UPA Government at risk of imploding under the weight of
irreconcilable differences between the approaches of an ideologically-driven Left and an
indignant Prime Minister.
The Left parties see the nuclear deal as part of a larger design to "entangle India into a
complex web of political, economic and military relationships" as part of the India-US
strategic relationship. They reason that the Hyde Act and the text of the 123 Agreement
should not be viewed as a separate and compartmentalised entity without considering
their implications for India's independent foreign policy, strategic autonomy and the
repercussions of the US quest to make India its reliable ally in Asia. The Left wants the
government to pause and not operationalise the nuclear deal before the UPA-Left
political committee arrives at findings.
The UPA Government has not made an official comment yet on whether it is going to the
IAEA in Vienna for concluding an India-specific safeguards agreement, and if so, when.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in his August 13 statement in Parliament, said that
India will approach the IAEA "shortly". No statement has been made since then to
indicate otherwise. Sources told this newspaper that nothing is precluded and all options
will be explored for bringing the proposed India-US civil nuclear cooperation agreement
to a fruition despite the serious reservations voiced by the Left parties. The sources
sought to suggest that the negotiations with the IAEA might take place in October.
According to a timetable drawn up by the US, the George W Bush Administration was
looking at a possible meeting of the NSG consultative group in Vienna in October or
November. The proposed India-US civil nuclear cooperation agreement will be on the
agenda of that meeting. The 123 Agreement could then be formally sent to Capitol Hill for
a final vote in November or December. The NSG, however, can take up India's case only
after the safeguards agreement is in place. India can conclude the negotiations for an
India-specific safeguards agreement anytime it wants to but that agreement will have to
be approved by a majority of the IAEA's 35-member Board of Governors before the NSG
can get into the act.
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