New Delhi, January 21
India and Australia today announced that they would launch negotiations on a civil nuclear cooperation agreement in New Delhi in March, which will facilitate the export of uranium to India to meet its growing energy needs.

The announcement was made by External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid and Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr after wide-ranging talks between them on bilateral issues as well as global developments.

After saying ‘No’ to selling uranium to India for years since it is not a signatory to the NPT, Australia had agreed to start negotiations on a civil nuclear deal with India during the visit of Prime Minister Julia Gillard to New Delhi in October last year.

In December 2011, Gillard's Labour Party had overturned its long-standing ban on exporting uranium to India, realising that its policy of denying the yellow metal to India was proving to be a major irritant in bilateral ties.

“India is a key partner for Australia...Australian and Indian officials will be working to conclude the (civil nuclear cooperation) agreement which will enable the export of uranium from Australia to India,” Carr said.

Asked if the two countries had set any time-frame for concluding the pact, Khurshid said: “A sense of urgency and purpose will be there. We will move swiftly.”

He said India already had signed similar agreements with a number of countries which could be used as a model for the proposed accord with Australia.

On whether India and Australia were considering trilateral or quadrilateral cooperation involving the US and Japan for cooperation on strategic issues like the South China Sea in view of the Chinese aggressive in the disputed sea, Carr said there was no such proposal being considered by the two sides.

Khurshid said the two countries were on the same page in this matter. One must not ignore the implications of trilateral or quadrilateral cooperation. He said India and Australia had a similar position that the law of the sea must prevail in the context of the South China Sea too.

During the parleys, it was decided that Defence Minister AK Antony would visit Australia sometime in March for further discussions on cooperation in defence and security sectors. This would be the first ever visit by an Indian Defence Minister to Australia.