Open civilian reactors to IAEA, says Bush

Days ahead of his visit to India, US President George W Bush today said India had to separate its civilian and military nuclear programmes and bring them under IAEA safeguards, admitting that it was not an easy decision to take.

"India first needs to bring its civilian energy programme under the same international safeguards that government power programmes do in other countries," he said.

"India needs several nuclear initiatives and technology and it should bring its civilian programme under IAEA safeguards. This is not an easy decision to make for India, nor is it an easy decision for the United States," the president said in his address to Asia Society here.

Implementing the nuclear agreement, reached between him and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in July last year, "will take time and patience of both the countries," he said, adding efforts in this direction would continue. He would continue to encourage India to create a credible, transparent and defensible plan to separate its civilian and military programmes.

Terming the July-18, 2005, initiative as a "bold step forward", he said this understanding strengthened the bonds of trust between the two countries.

Referring to India's "growing influence" in the world arena, Bush said Indo-US cooperation would make the world more secure. India needed clean energy and the US would work with it towards zero-emission coal-fired plants. At the same time, it wanted less dependence on fossil fuels whose prices were rising because of global demands.

On the issue of outsourcing, Bush said Americans had lost jobs which had given them traumatic experiences. But, he said, instead of bringing in protectionist policies, it would be better to depend on education policy for skilled jobs in the 21st century.

On Kashmir, he said the US would encourage both India and Pakistan to address "this important issue" with both india and pakistan engaged in a dialogue, he said "they now have an historic opportunity towards lasting peace. For too long, kashmir has been a source of violence and distress between these two countries."

About Pakistan, US ally in the war on terror, Bush said washington wanted to build a broad strategic partnership with people of that country, lavishing praise on Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf, he described him as a courageous leader who had faced several assassination attempts for waging a war against terrorist elements.