New Delhi, May 13
India said today that it supported efforts that were underway to bring about a consensus on the fissile material cut-off treaty that would help in stopping the production of fissile material for weapons.

In its annual report released today the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said India supported efforts for negotiations on a universal, non-discriminatory and verifiable fissile material cut-off treaty that would prohibit the future production of fissile material for weapons purposes.

India has also unambiguously indicated its support to the establishment of an ad hoc committee at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva to negotiate a phased programme for global nuclear disarmament. India continues to maintain its opposition to the Non-Proliferation Treaty as a discriminatory and flawed treaty.

In May 1998, India announced a voluntary moratorium on further underground nuclear test explosions. India has also announced its willingness to move towards a de jure formalisation of this voluntary undertaking and is in the process of building a national consensus on signing the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.

The report says India remains committed to constructively participating in international efforts aimed at strengthening the norm against biological and toxin weapons by upholding the Convention on Biological and Toxin Weapons and supporting international consensus to strengthen compliance with it. As an original party to the Chemicals Weapons Convention, India remains committed to discharging, fully and faithfully its obligations under the convention.

The destruction schedule prescribed by the convention is being fully met. India is committed to strengthening the norm of transparency in conventional armaments in general and greater participation in the UN Register of Conventional Arms, in particular. It has been submitting its reports to the Register annually since 1994, the report says.