A proposed nuclear deal that could be signed during US President George W. Bush's visit to India this week would not only meet the energy-starved country's demand for power but also signal its acceptance into an elite club of trusted nuclear states, analysts say.
The two have been negotiating on the issue for months and are trying urgently to bridge remaining differences so the agreement can be inked during Bush's trip, which was to begin yesterday.
The nuclear deal is "important because if it comes through, the technology denial regime that we faced for the past 30 years will go away," said Arundhati Ghosh, India's former representative to the Conference on Disarmament.
According to C.U. Bhaskar, the deputy director of the Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses, the successful conclusion of the nuclear deal would mean "recognition of India as a relevant power, as a responsible nuclear weapons state."
Clinching the deal with Washington would be "a very big plus" as it paves the way for New Delhi to access nuclear technology from other countries as well.
India has lately redoubled its efforts to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council. It is also a regular invitee at the meetings of the Group of Eight industrialized nations.
"For India, the symbolism of being admitted into the global fold of nuclear states is enormous," Bhaskar said.
"More than the nuclear weapon, it is the access to the loop of global nuclear commerce -- obtaining the uranium ore fuel that India is in dire need of -- and related high-tech [infrastructure] not just from the US but other states such as Russia and France that is crucial," he said.
"If the deal goes through it has the potential to influence the global strategic architecture of the early part of [the] 21st century," he added.
Lalit Mansingh, a former Indian ambassador to the US, said: "From the point of view of public perception, irrespective of the substance, the visit will be seen as unsuccessful if the nuclear deal does not go through."
If the nuclear deal proceeds, it will enable India to rely less on oil as its economy expands between 7 to 8 percent a year, he said.
"It means access to technology and commerce that has been long been denied to India," Mansingh said.
Under a preliminary agreement reached during a visit by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Washington in July, India has to separate its civilian and military nuclear programs in return for access to the civilian nuclear technology it has been denied for almost three decades.
Those reactors placed under the civilian program will be open to international inspection.
The deal commits Washington to receive approval from the US Congress and countries forming the 44-member Nuclear Suppliers Group to lift restrictions on India -- which has refused to sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty -- in the civilian nuclear technology trade.
Several rounds of talks have been held between US Under Secretary for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns and his Indian counterpart Shyam Saran, but officials have made it clear that differences remain.
Talks have been mired over Washington's demand that India put more reactors on a list of civilian nuclear facilities to be placed under international scrutiny -- which Indian scientists say will effectively cap the country's nuclear weapons program.
US nuclear experts fear that India is keeping its "fast breeder" reactors out of the list of civilian reactors open to inspections as they are particularly suitable for the production of weapons-grade plutonium.
On Monday, premier Singh told parliament India would put about 65 percent of its listed nuclear power capacity under International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards, but would not place an experimental fast breeder reactor program under outside inspection.
Saudi Arabian largesse is flooding Egypt’s cultural scene, but the reception is mixed. Some welcome new “cooperation” between two regional powerhouses, while others fear a hostile takeover by Riyadh. In Cairo, historically the cultural capital of the Arab world, Egyptian Minister of Culture Nevine al-Kilany recently hosted Saudi Arabian General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki al-Sheikh. The deep-pocketed al-Sheikh has emerged as a Medici-like patron for Egypt’s cultural elite, courted by Cairo’s top talent to produce a slew of forthcoming films. A new three-way agreement between al-Sheikh, Kilany and United Media Services — a multi-media conglomerate linked to state intelligence that owns much of
The US and other countries should take concrete steps to confront the threats from Beijing to avoid war, US Representative Mario Diaz-Balart said in an interview with Voice of America on March 13. The US should use “every diplomatic economic tool at our disposal to treat China as what it is... to avoid war,” Diaz-Balart said. Giving an example of what the US could do, he said that it has to be more aggressive in its military sales to Taiwan. Actions by cross-party US lawmakers in the past few years such as meeting with Taiwanese officials in Washington and Taipei, and
The Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan has no official diplomatic allies in the EU. With the exception of the Vatican, it has no official allies in Europe at all. This does not prevent the ROC — Taiwan — from having close relations with EU member states and other European countries. The exact nature of the relationship does bear revisiting, if only to clarify what is a very complicated and sensitive idea, the details of which leave considerable room for misunderstanding, misrepresentation and disagreement. Only this week, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) received members of the European Parliament’s Delegation for Relations
Denmark’s “one China” policy more and more resembles Beijing’s “one China” principle. At least, this is how things appear. In recent interactions with the Danish state, such as applying for residency permits, a Taiwanese’s nationality would be listed as “China.” That designation occurs for a Taiwanese student coming to Denmark or a Danish citizen arriving in Denmark with, for example, their Taiwanese partner. Details of this were published on Sunday in an article in the Danish daily Berlingske written by Alexander Sjoberg and Tobias Reinwald. The pretext for this new practice is that Denmark does not recognize Taiwan as a state under