US govt defends nuke pact with India

The Bush administration has made it clear that it will not ask the US Congress to take legislative action that will end India's nuclear isolation unless New Delhi acted to fulfil its commitments, particularly "the most important" one on separating its civilian and military facilities.

"Our judgement is that it will not be wise or fair to ask the Congress to make such a consequential decision without evidence that the Indian government was acting on what is arguably the most important of its commitments""the separation of its civilian and military facilities," Under-secretary of State for Political Affairs Nicolas Burns told the Senate foreign relations committee yesterday.

The administration believed that it was better to "wait" before it asked the Congress to consider any required legislative action "until India is further along in taking the necessary steps to fulfil our agreement," he said.

Under the agreement, reached between President George W Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on July 18, the US would lift restrictions on the supply of reactors and fuel for India's civilian nuclear programme provided New Delhi fulfilled a series of obligations.

Burns said he had "told the Indian leadership two weeks ago that it must craft a credible and transparent plan" and begin to implement it before the American government would seek Congressional approval.

India might not be ready to begin compliance until April next year, he said adding that Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran had assured him that New Delhi "will produce such a plan."

Acknowledging that the actions India committed to undertake were "difficult, complex and time-consuming," Burns insisted that it was in the American interest to bring India into compliance with the standards and practices of the international proliferation regime.

"And we decided that the only way to reach that goal was to end India's isolation and begin to engage it," said Burns who was accompanied by Under-secretary of State for Arms Control and Internal Security Robert Joseph at the hearing. The deal "advances our strategic partnership and is a net gain for non-proliferation. We do not plan to offer such co-operation to any other country," Burns said.

He said India had demonstrated a strong commitment to protect fissile materials and nuclear technology in spite of not being part of the Non-Proliferation Treaty.