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India, Aus to resume negotiations on civil nuke cooperation

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Press Trust of India New Delhi
Last Updated : Jan 25 2013 | 5:33 AM IST

Gillard, who will arrive on Monday for a three-day visit, will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other senior government ministers, apart from calling on President Pranab Mukherjee and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi.

Announcement for commencement of civil nuclear cooperation negotiations is likely to be made apart from inking of some MoUs between India and Australia, official sources said today.

In December last year, Australia's ruling Labour Party had cleared the way for export of the country's uranium to India after a strong debate in the party's 46th national conference, paving the way for the first Australian country-to-country pact to sell the yellow cake to a non-signatory to Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty country.

Apart from civil nuclear sector, cooperation in trade and investment, will be among the issues of focus during Gillard's visit which will give a renewed thrust to negotiations on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement that will pave the way for greater market access to Indian companies and individuals.

Currently, the trade volume between the two countries stands at about USD 20 billion, growing at the rate of 20 per cent every year.

Briefing about the visit, Joint Secretary in MEA Sanjay Bhattacharyya said there was an adverse trade imbalance in favour of Australia but the exports from that country was contributing to India's development.

  

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First Published: Oct 11 2012 | 7:15 PM IST

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