Putin strikes a nuclear deal

By C. Raja Mohan

NEW DELHI, OCT. 4. The visiting Russian President Mr. Vladimir Putin, today breached the long-standing international nuclear blockade against India by committing his nation to expand atomic energy cooperation with India.

The dramatic move comes a day before Mr. Putin travels to the heart of the Indian nuclear establishment in Trombay and is likely to draw considerable international attention. Moscow will certainly be bombarded with questions from Western nations on the legal and non-proliferation implications of the nuclear deal with India.

Top atomic energy officials from both sides signed a memorandum of understanding on intensifying bilateral cooperation in the peaceful uses of atomic energy. The MoU, however, is unlikely to be made public. Informed sources here say that at the heart of this path-breaking agreement is a Russian commitment to contribute to India's growing nuclear energy requirements.

The MoU is also said to assert that the proposed nuclear cooperation would be fully in tune with Moscow's international legal obligations on transfer of nuclear technology.

The agreement will certainly boost India's plans to accelerate the nuclear power generation programme. Over the last few years, New Delhi has been looking for an external partner to rapidly increase the contribution of nuclear power to its energy market. But nuclear cooperation with India has been made difficult by the current international rules on the transfer of nuclear power reactors.

These regulations issued by the Nuclear Suppliers Group, a cartel of advanced nations, in early 1992 demand that any nuclear sales to India must be followed by the so-called ``fullscope safeguards'' - or complete international control over the Indian atomic programme. India has no intention of accepting such external controls.

The current Indo-Russian nuclear power project at Koodankulam in Tamil Nadu is based on an agreement that predates the 1992 requirement on fullscope safeguards.

France had recently shown some interest in selling nuclear power reactors to India. Paris hoped that an Indian decision to sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty would allow it to press for a change in the terms of international nuclear trade with New Delhi.

Today's nuclear MoU suggests that Russia is ready to go ahead without demanding any unacceptable political conditions. New Delhi is prepared to accept facility-specific safeguards on the imported nuclear reactors, but not on the entire atomic energy programme.

How will Moscow reconcile its current obligations under the NSG with an agreement to provide new nuclear reactors to India? Will it demand a change in the NSG rules? Will other key nations such as the United States and France go along with Russia? The answers to these questions will have to wait a while.

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