The Hindu Business Line : India, US seal nuclear deal

Historic deal
India has agreed that 14 of its civilian nuclear reactors will be open to international safeguards.
The fast-breeder reactor programme will not be subject to outside inspection.
US may expand the number of H1B visas for Indian scientists, engineers and physicists.

LANDMARK ACCORD: The US President, Mr George W. Bush, and the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, at a news conference in the Capital on Thursday. — Kamal Narang

New Delhi , March 2

India and the US today crossed a major milestone in civil nuclear cooperation after the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, and the visiting US President, Mr George Bush, reached an understanding on the implementation of the July 18, 2005 agreement on this issue.

"I have conveyed to the President that India has finalised the identification of civilian facilities to which we had committed. I was also happy to hear from the President that he now intends to approach the US Congress to amend US laws and the Nuclear Supplier Group to adjust its guideline. We will discuss with the International Atomic Energy Agency in regard to fashioning an appropriate India-specific safeguards agreement. You will appreciate I cannot say more now, while our Parliament is in session," the Prime Minister told the media at a joint conference with Mr Bush after their nearly an hour-and-half bilateral discussions.

`Historic agreement'

Mr Bush, in his remarks, said, "We concluded an historic agreement today on nuclear power. It's not an easy job for the Prime Minister to achieve this agreement, I understand. It's not easy for the American President to achieve this agreement. But it's a necessary agreement. It's one that will help both our peoples."

Though no details were forthcoming on the understanding reached on the civilian nuclear cooperation issue, official sources later said that India had agreed that 14 of its civilian nuclear reactors would be open to international safeguards while the fast-breeder reactor programme would not be subject to outside inspection. The separation of India's 22 nuclear reactors would be undertaken in a phased matter and completed by 2014, the sources added.

India had also made it clear that classification of nuclear reactors to be built in future would be its sole decision and there would be no debate on it, official sources said.

Apart from the nuclear deal, the two countries also agreed to cooperate in a number of areas such as trade and economy, energy security and clean environment, for innovation and the knowledge economy, for global safety and security and for deepening democracy and meeting international challenges.

In the field of trade and economy, the two leaders agreed to consider the recommendations of the Indo-US CEO Forum and endorse the efforts of the India-US Trade Policy Forum to reduce barriers to trade and investment with the goal of doubling bilateral trade in three years.

Investment summit

Dr Singh and Mr Bush also agreed to advance mutually beneficial bilateral trade and investment flows by holding a high-level public-private investment summit in 2006 and continuing with the efforts to facilitate and promote foreign direct investment and eliminate impediments to it.

Trade cooperation

The two sides will also enhance bilateral consultations on various issues including tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade in goods and services and preventing the illicit use of the financial system. The Prime Minister and the US President also welcomed the US Department of Commerce's plan to create a licence exception for items that would otherwise require an export licence to end-users in India engaged solely in civilian activities. The two countries have also decided to expand cooperation in agriculture.

Mr Bush also indicated that the US might expand the number of H1B visas for Indian scientists, engineers and physicists. He also told Dr Singh that "oh, by the way, Mr Prime Minister, the United States is looking forward to eating Indian mangoes." So far, the US did not allow import of mangoes from India.

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