Rajeev Sharma
Tribune News ServiceNew Delhi, March 3
The external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee today indulged in some subtle diplomacy when he said India would “take forward” its engagement on the Indo-US nuclear deal and would do so by continuing to seek “broad political consensus within the country”.
In a suo motu statement on ‘Foreign Policy-related Developments’ in Lok Sabha, Mukherjee laid stress on the importance of India crossing the IAEA and NSG (Nuclear Suppliers’ Group) hurdles, saying that without doing this similar deal with other countries like Russia, France and UK would not be possible.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) quickly reacted to Mukherjee’s statement and said the government should first respect the majority opinion expressed by Parliament. The Left parties have consistently opposed any sort of strategic alliance with the USA, including nuclear cooperation. India and IAEA concluded
the fifth round of talks on the safeguards in Vienna last week
and reported considerable progress towards the text which once completed will be presented to a Left-UPA committee.Mukherjee said India was currently engaged in negotiations with the International Atomic Energy Agency to arrive at an agreed text of an India-specific Safeguards Agreement. The conclusion of such an agreement will enable the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group to amend its guidelines for civil nuclear commerce in favour of India. This will open the door to civil nuclear cooperation with various countries, including Russia, USA, France, UK, etc, with many of whom the necessary enabling bilateral agreements for such trade have been discussed and are in various stages of finalisation.
“This development will signify, finally, an end to the unfair technology denial regimes and sanctions that India has been faced with for over three decades. We will continue to seek broad political consensus within the country to take forward our engagement on this issue with other countries,” he said.
On the applicability of the Hyde Act to Indo-US civil nuclear cooperation, Mukherjee stressed that the Hyde Act was an enabling provision that is between the executive and the legislative organs of the US government. “India’s rights and obligations regarding civil nuclear cooperation with the USA arise only from the bilateral 123 Agreement that we have agreed upon with the USA.”
The government will continue its efforts to develop close political, social and economic relations with the countries of the region and with all major powers of the world, so as to add to the country’s ability to pursue its independent foreign policy as dictated by its national interest. Mukherjee apprised the House of developments related to foreign policy since the conclusion of the winter session last December.
Mukherjee spoke at length about India-China relations and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s China visit (January 13-15). Significantly, on the boundary question, Mukherjee stressed that during Prime Minister’s visit, both sides positively appraised the work of the Special Representatives in seeking a mutually acceptable framework for a settlement that will be based on the Agreement on Guiding Principles and Political Parameters signed in April 2005. Both sides have also agreed to maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas.
On Chinese officials’ “regret” at Prime Minister’s visit to Arunachal Pradesh (January 31-February 1), Mukherjee said: “The fact that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India has been clearly conveyed to the Chinese side by government.” He said the Prime Minister’s visit to Arunachal Pradesh was to assure our citizens that government was mindful of their developmental needs and was ready and willing to assist them through concrete projects.
PTI adds: US assistant secretary of state Richard Boucher will arrive here tomorrow on a two-day visit for discussions with Indian officials on nuclear and several other issues.
