Nuclear Supplier Nations to Become Focus of Washington Effort to Advance U.S.-Indian Deal

Now that the U.S. Congress has cleared the way for the U.S.-Indian nuclear deal to proceed, the Bush administration plans to focus its efforts on changing international nuclear export guidelines, a senior U.S. official said this week (see GSN, Dec. 13).

As India possesses nuclear weapons and is not a party to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, the planned agreement requires changes to U.S. nonproliferation laws and to guidelines set by the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (see GSN, Dec. 14).

Last week’s passage of U.S. legislation enabling the deal “is a very powerful message to the NSG countries that the U.S. is going to push very hard for India and champion its cause at the NSG,” U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns told reporters Wednesday.  “That’s the message we are giving out to all the countries that sit on the NSG” (Times of India, Dec. 14).

One potential message recipient could be Japan, which today reserved judgment on the deal at the end of a four-day visit by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Agence France-Presse reported.

“On this issue, I have told Prime Minister Singh that our country’s position is still under examination,” Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said after their meeting.  “I told Prime Minister Singh that Japan was the only country that was attacked by nuclear bombs and so we have a special feeling against them” (Agence France-Presse/Sharewatch, Dec. 15)

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