Indian PM confident of Japan's support to US nuclear deal
By Ali Muthu,WNS New Delhi Correspondent
NEW DELHI - Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday said he was confident of Japan's support for India's ambitions of entering the civilian nuclear club. "I am convinced that when the time comes Japan will be on our side," Singh told reporters on board a homebound flight from a four-day visit to Japan, according to the Press Trust of India (PTI). On Friday, Tokyo agreed to start talks with India on a free-trade pact but declined to extend support to a deal between India and the United States that promises long-denied civilian nuclear technology to India.
Japan is a key player in the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group, which controls the transfer of nuclear material and needs to approve the landmark agreement. Oxford-educated economist Singh said he was hopeful that Japan would relent. "I am not at all disappointed because there is adequate appreciation of the fact that India needs nuclear power for its energy security," he reportedly said. "Our commitment is that we will have in place India-specific safeguards with the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)," Singh said, referring to his talks with Japanese Premier Shinzo Abe in Tokyo. The deal signed last year by Singh and US President George W. Bush stipulates that India must put its civilian-use atomic reactors under the IAEA's scanner.
Abe, following talks with Singh, said India must assure the international community of its commitment to the IAEA. Singh said Abe's "statement reflected the actual situation wherein India has to put in place a safeguards agreement with the IAEA," the PTI reported. India in 1998 declared itself a nuclear weapons power and has refused to sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Japan snapped off aid to India and Pakistan after the rivals' nuclear tests. But Japan has since warmed to India amid sour ties with China, in part over the legacy of Tokyo's past aggression.
posted by wnsworld @ 9:15 PM
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