Senate panel backs US-India civilian nuclear pact

Washington, June 30 : The US-India civilian nuclear deal secured another major victory in the US Congress when the Senate Foreign Relations Council adopted the US-India Peaceful Atomic Energy Cooperation bill with a thumping majority, bolstering its chances of winning full approval in coming weeks.

The Senate vote of 16-2 comes two days after the House International Relations Committee approved the measure to pave the way to give India access to nuclear technology by a 37-5 votes.

The vote spells a major victory for President George W Bush, who went against all odds to ensure that his proposal to lift a 30-year-old ban on India's nuclear activities got Congressional endorsement and it could also make the Republican-run Congress approve the agreement.

Its prospects also improved by the support it received from committee Chairman Richard Lugar, R-Ind, who called the accord ''the most important strategic diplomatic initiative undertaken by Mr Bush.'' The full House and Senate will have to approve an identical measure before it can be sent to the President for his signature.

Senate committee approval came on a 16-2 vote. The lone negative votes were cast by Sens Russell Feingold, D-Wis, and Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.

Under the deal, the US will help India with nuclear fuel and technology in return for its non-proliferation and safeguard commitments on its nuclear facilities.

The legislation seeks to exempt India from the provisions of an American law - the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 - to allow the exports of American nuclear materials, equipment and technology to India and to implement the US Additional Protocol.

The US Atomic Energy Act of 1954 currently prevents the US from trading nuclear technology with nations that have not signed up to the Non Proliferation Treaty. The law had to be amended to allow the US-India deal to become effective.

The measure as passed by the House and Senate panels will now go before the full Senate and House of Representatives for a floor vote sometime later next month, though no schedule has been drawn up as yet.

In the debate preceding the vote Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman Richard Lugar, an influential Republican, hailed the measure saying it was ''the most important strategic diplomatic initiative undertaken'' by President Bush.

''By concluding this pact and the far-reaching set of cooperative agreements that accompany it, the President has embraced a long-term outlook that seeks to enhance the core strength of our foreign policy in a way that will give us new diplomatic options and improve global stability,'' he said.

Joseph Biden, D-Delaware, who is the ranking Democrat on the Senate panel said even though the deal was very difficult to implement, he praised India's commitments saying it went ''beyond the letter and spirit of this agreement.'' The main criticism against the deal was that it could boost India's nuclear arsenal, while supporters contended that it would provide much-needed energy to a crucial ally that has always managed its nuclear technologies responsibly even though it did not sign the NPT.

The committee rejected by 13-5 an amendment from Feingold to require Mr Bush to provide assurances that India would not divert nuclear fuel to its atomic weapons program or to non-nuclear states.

UNI

Related Stories
BJP cautions country on Indo-US nuclear deal
'No Indo-US cooperation if India conducts N-test'
Indo-US nuclear agreement is up for consideration