Reject US terms for nuclear cooperation: CPM

New Delhi, May 4: Taking umbrage at seven US lawmakers demanding that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh terminate cooperation with Iran in the energy sector and military spheres, the CPI(M) today asked the Centre to reject the US terms for nuclear cooperation.

''It is imperative now that the government make a statement in Parliament about both the status of the negotiations and on how the Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline project is progressing,'' the CPI(M) Polit Bureau said in a statement here.

The CPI(M), CPI and Forward Bloc on Wednesday had warned the Manmohan Singh government against its ''giving in'' to the US pressure on the Indo-US nuclear deal and the gas pipeline project.

They asserted that even if the deal did not go through, India had nothing to lose.

India and US held negotiations earlier this week in Washington to iron out differences on the 123 agreement.

''This is the latest instance of the US pressure to abide by its conditions for concluding the nuclear cooperation agreement. This is the second letter within a fortnight, the earlier one by eight US senators,'' the CPI(M) said.

The party's statement comes in the backdrop of the key Congressional supporters of the n-deal writing to Manmohan Singh to ''severe'' military ties with Iran and ''terminate'' all cooperation in the energy sector.

This letter follows an April 19 letter signed by eight senators on the same issue.

The CPI(M) said it is of the view that the 123 agreement should not be negotiated with the US without clarifying all the issues which were raised in the Prime Minister's statement in Parliament.

''With the 123 agreement being negotiated and the US mounting steady pressure, it is imperative that the government make a statement in Parliament about both the status of the negotiations and on how the Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline project is progressing,'' the party said.

The Hyde Act passed by the US Congress had set out unacceptable terms on how India should conduct itself with regard to Iran and other foreign policy issues, the Left party said.

The CPI(M) had repeatedly pointed out that the nuclear cooperation agreement entailed a much wider strategic alignment which would seriously damage India's foreign policy and strategic autonomy, the statement added.

UNI

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