US House passes the Bill on Indo-US nuclear deal

Washington, Dec 9 (UNI) The US House of Representatives passed the Bill required to give effect to the Indo-US civilian nuclear agreement by 330 to 59 votes last night.

The bill, which was passed after a brief discussion, will now go to the Senate for its consideration and approval.

Indications are that the Senate would take it up within the next few hours.

The bill will be formally known as the 'Henry J Hyde United States-India Atomic Energy Peaceful Cooperation Act of 2006'.

It is named after the Republican Congressman Hyde, the outgoing chairman of the House International Relations Committee.

The House had yesterday passed by 355 to 55 votes a resolution on the rules and procedure for discussion on the Bill, based on the House-Senate Conferees' unanimous report which New Delhi had already welcomed.

During the discussion on the Bill and earlier on the resolution, some Democrats opposed the nuclear deal, arguing that it would destroy the international non-proliferation regime, leaving countries like China and Russia free to enter into similar arrangements with Pakistan and Iran, respectively.

With what face the US would ask Beijing and Moscow not to enter into such agreements, asked Democrat Edward Markey who led the opposition to the Bill.

He called the measure a "historic mistake" which, he said would come to haunt the United States in the not too distant future.

Mr Markey said some eight of India's nuclear installations would not come under the international inspection and the country would be free to use them to develop nuclear weapons.

Supporters of the Bill, however, argued that the agreement would bring India, which is not a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), into the non-proliferation regime, subjecting most of its nuclear installations to international inspection.

Mr Tom Lantos, a ranking Democrat, who will now take over the leadership of the House International Relations Committee, said, ''the expansion of peaceful nuclear trade with India will usher in a new partnership between India and the United States based on our shared objective of preventing the spread of dangerous nuclear technology to countries and groups that would use it for evil purposes.'' He said, ''the legislation will help fashion a partnership with India to further the US non-proliferation goals." The agreement will enable India to buy the US nuclear technology and fuel and in return it will accept international inspection on its non-military nuclear installations.

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