The deal as its title indicates is a Civilian Nuclear Agreement. India has presently 22 reactors. The deal permits India to separate our military and civilian reactors and place the later under an inspection regime of the IAEA. India has accordingly identified 14 reactors to be under the deal. The other 8 reactors, outside the deal, permits India's military nuclear program to continue unfettered.
When India conducted Pokhran II under the NDA regime, the US reacted by constituting the Nuclear Supply Group (NSG) which presently has 45 countries as its members. For countries to engage in nuclear transactions globally, it needed a NSG waiver. Because India did not have a NSG waiver, our nuclear program in this country began to hurt. Uranium supplies, spares etc dried up and consequently nuclear power generation capacity are operating at less than 50%. This means that the thousands of crores invested by the country is not providing full value in returns. The US is the most influential member of the NSG. Without US support, no waiver is possible. So the necessity of first striking a deal with the US, which even the Chinese have entered into.
RE:ManMohan Singh's Master Stroke
by All Right on Jul 10, 2008 05:23 PM Permalink
Even if the Agreement is ratified by the US Congress, by giving one year's notice, we can terminate the agreement, though we are obligated to keep the 14 reactors under the deal under IAEA inspection regime for perpetuity.
The Commies and Knickerwallahs scare the nation of the Hyde Act. The reality is that there is no mention of Hyde Act specifically under the 123 Agreement or in the IAEA Safeguard Agreement. Only indirectly through mention of operable "national laws". But this mention of "national laws" is mutual. This means if Hyde Act is a domestic law of the US, we can have a law exactly reverse of the Hyde Act. In a dispute, we are bound by our national laws while the US is to theirs -creating a legal gridlock. The Hyde Act in reality is a toothless tiger!
RE:ManMohan Singh's Master Stroke
by AK on Jul 10, 2008 09:22 PM Permalink
Your understanding of the agreement and international laws is good but you keep missing the point that once US Congress ratifies this agreement it overrides its own Hyde Act. So there is no HYDE Act in effect to think about.
RE:ManMohan Singh's Master Stroke
by All Right on Jul 10, 2008 05:23 PM Permalink
Once we secure NSG waiver, it does not bind us to nuclear trade with only the US. We are at liberty to trade with anyone we like. It also does not imply that trade would be a one-way street, India reduced to being a net importer. India's fast breeder reactors are cutting edge, generations ahead of even the US. We have the largest reserves of thorium in the world. Thorium cannot be directly used as a nuclear fuel. It needs to be processed into uranium. And this uranium is one of the highest quality in the world. However the glitch is that it will take at least another 10 years for our fast breeders to come on stream. So we need a short-strategy to plug our energy needs and this is where the deal finds a fit.
Further once India secures a NSG waiver, it is immaterial whether US Congress approves the Indo-US Agreement as we will be at liberty to trade with all other countries whether it maybe Russia, France, Australia etc. It is George Bush's personal credibility and US nuclear business interests that will be at stake that would ensure adequate pressure is created in the US for the US Congress to ratify the Indo-US agreement. The NSG waiver is accordingly our prime objective and not Indo-US Nuclear strategic ties as commies and knickerwallahs are projecting.
RE:ManMohan Singh's Master Stroke
by Pushp Shah on Jul 10, 2008 05:26 PM Permalink
WHAT ABOUT THE SPENT FUEL.........CAN ANYONE TELL ME ? ALSO PLEASE PROVIDE ME THE LINK TO THIS 29 PAGE IAEA DOCUMENT
