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U.S. Says India Deal Improves World Security
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said today in Australia that the U.S.-Indian nuclear technology sharing agreement would improve global security, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, March 15). Rice, at a press conference with Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, said the deal “strengthens security by expanding the reach” of the International Atomic Energy Agency “to have access to Indian civil nuclear facilities which it currently does not have.” “Everyone understands a growing economy like India needs energy supply and civil nuclear energy is clean, it protects the environment, it can be plentiful and currently India is not capable of pursuing civil nuclear power to the degree that it will need to,” she said (Associated Press, March 16). Downer, while agreeing with efforts to engage India, did not wholly endorse the deal, and said Australia does not plan to end its policy barring sales of nuclear material to countries that are not signatories to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, March 7). Still, Rice said she was pleased that Canberra has backed the agreement somewhat, Asia Pulse reported. “I appreciate that the Australian government ... has said that they think the deal itself is a good deal,” she said. “I think the issue of whether or not one agrees to participate in fuel supplies is a quite separable issue and is one for the Australians to determine.” “It’s not one that is at issue with the United States by any means,” she added (Asia Pulse, March 16). Russia, on the other hand, is going ahead with plans to sell uranium to New Delhi, AFP reported. Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov is expected to sign the deal during a visit to India that begins today. India has defended the agreement, saying it does not violate current international regulations. “There is no violation of Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) guidelines and Russia has approached the NSG under the safety exception clause,” the Indian Foreign Ministry said, referring to the clause that allows fuel transfers if a lack of fuel could pose a nuclear danger. “India has had to seek urgent and limited supplies of uranium fuel to enable (the Tarapur plant) to continue its operations in safety. The United States is aware of the urgent need for fuel for Tarapur,” the Foreign Ministry said (Elizabeth Roche, Agence France-Presse/Yahoo!News, March 16). Meanwhile, President George W. Bush faced tough questions yesterday about the nuclear sharing agreement from an unlikely source — an 85-year old retiree. Bush was taking questions at a Washington area retirement center when he was challenged by former U.S. official Lawrence Weiler, who worked on the U.S. team negotiating the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, the Los Angeles Times reported. “Mr. President, there are some — and I guess I would include myself — who have different views about the Indian agreement, because they're concerned about the effect that the agreement will have on the capacity of India to stimulate its own production of nuclear weapons,” Weiler told Bush, who was there to promote his Medicare prescription drug program. Weiler asked the president to consider a “no-first-use” policy for nuclear weapons. “The basic bargain there was that other countries would give up their nuclear weapons if we, the nuclear powers, would engage in a program of nuclear disarmament. The point is that we cannot expect that agreement, that basic agreement, to hold if the United States … has the position that we might initiate a nuclear war if it is necessary,” Weiler said. “I’ll take your words to heart, and think about it. Thank you. No commitment standing right here, of course,” Bush replied. “Part of the Indian deal is to actually get them to formally join some of the institutions that you helped — your work created,” Bush added (Peter Wallsten, Los Angeles Times, March 16).
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