By Arun Kumar, IANS
Washington : Former Indian Ambassador to the US Naresh Chandra says New Delhi is fully committed to the India-US civil nuclear deal, but it should not be made a “total litmus test” of their relationship.
“If for some reason the nuclear deal is not concluded satisfactorily and soon, everything will not fall by the wayside,” he said while participating in a panel discussion Friday with an Indian delegation visiting here for the US-India Strategic Dialogue.
Referring to the trouble it has run into in India, Chandra said while the deal had become the highest visible symbol of the growing partnership between the two countries, one must not forget that there was a whole spectrum of opinion, apprehensions and prejudices surrounding it.
“The government of India is fully committed to the deal, but it wants to do it with the support of as wide a political spectrum as possible,” he said noting there were some apprehensions about the enabling Hyde Act in India for one.
Recalling how the challenges posed by the imposition of US sanctions on India after its 1998 nuclear explosions were overcome, Chandra said the two countries had built a capacity and capability to face any challenge in their relationship.
B.J. Panda, a Biju Janata Dal Rajya Sabha member, said as the nuclear deal had become the centrepiece of India-US relations, it should be taken head on. He was confident that the deal can still be done with some “astute manoeuvring” by the government.
Another India delegate, Lt. Gen (Retd) Satish Nambiar, director, United Service Institution of India, said the emerging defence relationship between the two countries was very strong and there was no stepping back.
However, there was a “deficit of trust” about the US commitment with some fears that India would not get state of the art technology from it or if the rug would not be pulled out from under it, he said, asking the business community to do its bit to transform the relationship into a partnership.
Organised by the US-India Business Council and co-sponsored by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Aspen Strategy Group (ASG), the 10th “US-India Strategic Dialogue” Sep 15-18 is part of track II diplomacy. It brings Indian diplomats, business leaders and members of parliament to Washington to discuss critical issues with their American counterparts.