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New NSG norms to hit IndiaWill Lose Out On Enrichment Tech Transfer As It’s
A Non-NPT NationIndrani Bagchi TNN
New Delhi: The Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) has published new guidelines
tightening rules for transfer of enrichment and reprocessing (ENR)
technology to countries that have not signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation
Treaty (NPT).
While the decision to put out new guidelines was taken at the NSG
plenary meeting in Noordwijk on June 23-24, the new guidelines were
published only on Thursday.
The new rules restrict the transfer of ENR equipment and technology to
countries that have signed the NPT and have implemented comprehensive
safeguards. India has not signed the NPT and does not want to sign it as a
non-nuclear weapons state.
As a result of the Indo-US nuclear deal of 2008, the government signed
an Indiaspecific safeguards agreement with the IAEA which allowed India to
implement a “separation plan”, putting all its civilian nuclear reactors
under safeguards, while keeping the strategic nuclear weapons programme
outside its ambit.
The new guidelines expect the recipient state to sign the “model”
Additional Protocol — India has signed an Additional Protocol but it’s
India-specific as well. Due to the new norms India will find it very
difficult to access ENR technologies.
The government will be forced to answer uncomfortable questions on the
qualityof the nuclear waiver when Parliament meets next week.
However, when India got the waiver in September 20-08, the NSG exemption
said, “Participating governments may transfer trigger list items and/or
related technology to India… provided transfers of sensitive exports remain
subject to paragraphs 6 and 7 of the guidelines.”
At the time, paragraph 6 said: “Suppliers should exercise restraint in
the transfer of sensitive facilities, technology and material usable for
nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices.”
Paragraph 7 said:“For a transfer of an enrichment facility, or
technology therefore (sic), the recipient nation should agree neither the
transferred facility, nor any facility based on such technology, will be
designed or operated for the production of greater than 20% enriched uranium
without the consent of the supplier nation, of which the IAEA should be
advised.”
India could make the case that it would only confine itself to the 2008
waiver but if that would be the understanding among supplier countries is
very debatable.
The US, France and Russia have all issued statements after the new ENR
decisions that they would abide by their “full civilian nuclear cooperation”
with India. Nuclear analyst Mark Hibbs of US-based Carnegie Endowment said
that neither of the three main nuclear suppliers ever intended to supply ENR
to India.
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