Pranab defends n-deal, growing India-US ties

By Arun Kumar, IANS

New York : Even as the communist allies of the Indian government continue to target India-US nuclear deal, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said the deal will pave the way for lifting of global technology restrictions and stressed that New Delhi’s growing strategic ties with Washington will not be at the expense of a third country.


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Underlining the importance of nuclear energy and cutting-edge technologies for a burgeoning economy like India’s, Mukherjee stressed that the nuclear deal, which is currently stuck in a political impasse between the Indian government and its Left allies, will open the doors for high technology trade not only with the US but with the world.

“If India is to realise its economic potential, it will also need alternative sources of clean energy. Foremost among them is nuclear energy,” Mukherjee said Monday in a talk on India’s Foreign Policy and Future India-US Relations at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

“The bilateral civil nuclear cooperation agreement that India and the US have finalised indicates the way forward, which should lead to the lifting of technology restrictions and the opening up of cooperation in this field with several countries,” he said, without mentioning the political storm the deal has sparked back home.

In remarks that are clearly aimed at critics of the deal in India, especially the Communist parties who fear India’s growing strategic relationship with the US that may erode the independence of New Delhi’s foreign policy, Mukherjee stressed on “objective convergence in several areas” between the US and India, ranging from energy security, food security to the possible spread of WMD and terrorism.

“India and the US have an objective convergence in several areas,” he said.

The Left parties in India have warned the government against going ahead with next steps to implement the nuclear deal — negotiations with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and a waiver from the Nuclear Suppliers Group — failing which they may withdraw support to the ruling coalition, leading to likely early elections next year.

The government, however, appears determined to go ahead with the deal as IAEA chief Mohammed ElBaradei prepares to travel to India next week for informal talks on the issue of safeguards negotiations.

The future trajectory of the India-US ties should be clear from what Mukherjee described as India’s foreign policy preoccupations and priorities. He identified the areas of convergence as “in values and interests, in areas ranging from economic development to the dangers of proliferation of WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction), and in terrorism.

“As we look around the world, the defining characteristics of the Cold War era, namely, conflicting ideologies and opposing military blocs, are being transformed by the imperatives of globalisation, interdependence and connectivity,” he said.

“When I look at the issues of the future, namely, energy security, the environment, food security, and the possible spread of WMD, it is clear to me that each issue will require all states, and particularly countries like India and the US, to work together,” Mukherjee said.

Noting that the new challenges that are emerging, including protecting the electronically connected and inter-dependent world from terror and organised crime, are immensely complex, he said, “Handling this complexity requires much closer international cooperation than has been the case till now”.

India’s strategic partnership with the US has strengthened its relationship bilaterally, in the region and in the world, Mukherjee said, making it clear “that the development of closer relations between India and any one strategic partner will not be at the expense of relations with any third country.

“In today’s world, as interdependence among the major powers grows, each of us is engaging the other. Today, India enjoys strategic partnerships of one kind or another with as many as 11 countries and the EU,” he noted.

India, he said, was also pursuing high-level dialogue with major powers through the India, China and Russia trilateral forum and the India-Brazil-South Africa group, and also developing closer linkages with major powers like the US, Japan, the European Union and Russia.

Describing the links between India and the US as “multi-layered”, Mukherjee said the large and vibrant Indian-American community constitutes a vitally important bridge closely connecting many millions of citizens of the two countries.

Another important aspect of India’s relationship with the US is that it is of mutual benefit, he said, noting India’s rapid economic growth is propelled not primarily by exports, but much more by growing domestic consumer demand and increasing investments.

“India’s growth will thus not be at the cost of other countries. It will, in fact, be a major stabilising force in the global economy,” Mukherjee said.

“This is reflected in recent trends in India-US trade, where US exports to India are growing much faster than US imports from India.

“Investments are now also flowing in both directions. In terms of the global economy, India and the United States have shared concerns on critical issues, such as energy security. Both countries are, for instance, interested in the stabilisation of oil and gas prices at reasonable levels and in reduced dependence on fossil fuels,” he noted.

In advanced areas like nuclear energy and space exploration, a sound indigenous base has been built that enables India not only to absorb high technology but also to collaborate with the United States in new fields.

“In sum, our relationship has never been better than it is today. I am confident about its future,” Mukherjee said.

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