U.S.- India Civil Nuclear Cooperation Initiative

On March 2, 2006, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and United States President George W. Bush announced that "their nations have reached agreement on a landmark nuclear deal. Under the accord, India has agreed to separate its civilian and military nuclear programs. Civilian nuclear plants in India will now be open to international inspection." 

Robert Hoffman, a lobbyist for Oracle, describes the preliminary Congressional vote to exempt India from a ban on nuclear technology sales as "a coming-out party of sorts for the India lobby." The U.S. Atomic Energy Act bans nuclear sales to countries, such as India, that have not signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty. In June, both House and Senate committees gave in-principle support to the agreement negotiated between U.S. President George W. Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Under the agreement, only 14 of India's 22 nuclear reactors would be open to international scrutiny. The U.S India Business Council, a project of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, have hired lobbyists Patton Boggs to help with their campaign. The Indian government have hired Barbour Griffith & Rogers to promote the agreement. The final Congressional vote in expected within weeks.

Amory Lovins, the Chief Executive Officer of the Rocky Mountains Institute, an eco-efficiency think tank, is aghast at U.S. government support for the U.S.- India Civil Nuclear Cooperation Initiative. The agreement would facilitate an expansion of nuclear power in India, which is not a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty. "We're going to blow up what's left of the nonproliferation regimes to promote a sector that doesn't make sense," Lovins told the Washington Post. 

US-India Nuclear Accord 2006

 * "U.S. Nuclear Cooperation With India: Issues for Congress" prepared by Sharon Squassoni, Specialist in National Defense, Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division, Congressional Research Service, Updated January 12, 2006.
 * "The U.S.-India Nuclear Deal: The End Game Begins," PINR, January 27, 2006.
 * Brahma Chellaney, "Vaunted U.S.-India nuclear deal begins to fall apart," International Herald Tribune, February 13, 2006.
 * Martin Walker, "India to fight U.S. nuclear deal," UPI, February 23, 2006.
 * Seema Gahlaut, "Misfiring at the India Nuclear Deal," Foreign Policy, February 27, 2006.
 * "US and India seal nuclear accord," BBC, March 2, 2006. Transcript: US-India agreement, March 2, 2006.
 * Peter Wallsten, "Bush Brokers Landmark Nuclear Deal With India," Los Angeles Times, March 2, 2006.
 * Jim VandeHei and Dafna Linzer, "U.S., India Reach Deal On Nuclear Cooperation. With Fuel Imports Allowed, Arms Program Could Grow," Washington Post, March 2, 2006.
 * Selig S. Harrison, "A nuclear partnership with India," Boston Globe, March 2, 2006.
 * Andy Mukherjee, "Commentary: A nuclear-powered India would charge up global trade," International Herald Tribune, March 2, 2006.
 * David Jackson and Barbara Slavin, "More work ahead for U.S.-India nuclear deal," USA Today, March 2, 2006.
 * "Pact sends inspectors, U.S. expertise to India's nuclear programs," CNN, March 3, 2006.
 * "Nuclear Deal with India Breaks with Past U.S. Policy," NPR, March 3, 2006.
 * Ron Hutcheson and Jonathan S. Landay, "Nuclear Pact between U.S., India Draws Fire," Knight Ridder (Common Dreams), March 3, 2006.
 * Jim Lobe, "US Critics Question Nuclear Pact With India," AntiWar.com, March 4, 2006.
 * Joseph Cirincione, "The US's nuclear cave-in," Asia Times, March 4, 2006.
 * "Intelligence Brief: U.S.-India Nuclear Deal," PINR, March 7, 2006.
 * Anil Rane, "First DP world in port controversy and now India uses lobbyists to clinch nuclear deal in US," India Daily, March 13, 2006: "Indian Embassy in Washington had signed up two lobbying firms to 'sell the deal'. ... a $700,000 contract with Barbour, Griffith and Rogers, an outfit led by Robert Blackwill, US ambassador to India from 2001 to 2003, ... [and is] also paying $600,000 to Venable, a firm that 'boasts' of former Democratic Senator Birch Bayh of Indiana as its point man."
 * Michael Forsythe and Veena Trehan, "Friends in high places help India", International herald Tribune, July 17, 2006.
 * Steven Mufson, "One Man's Long Battle To Get U.S. to Kick Oil", Washington Post, July 25, 2006.

2005

 * Dafna Linzer, "Bush Officials Defend India Nuclear Deal. Aim Is Not to Reverse Policies, Allies Told," Washington Post, July 20, 2005.
 * Robert S. Norris and Hans M. Kristensen, "India's nuclear forces, 2005" Federation of American Scientists, September/October 2005.
 * Chidanand Rajghatta, "US-India nuclear deal under Iran gun," Times of India, September 20, 2005.

2004

 * Sultan Shahin, "India and Pakistan in nuclear dead heat," Asia Times, October 16, 2004.

Background

 * "Nuclear Issues in India and Pakistan: Selected Internet Resources," University of California Berkeley.
 * Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India.
 * Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited.
 * "India and weapons of mass destruction," Wikipedia.
 * "India's Nuclear Weapons Program. India As A Nuclear Power: 1998-2001," Nuclear Weapon Archive, Last changed March 30, 2001.
 * Nuclear Weapons, India, Federation of American Scientists, Last Updated November 8, 2002.
 * Gaurav Kampani, "Nuclear Overview," NTI, January 2006.
 * "Nuclear Power in India and Pakistan," World Nuclear Association, February 2006.

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