CPI(M) sees red in India's joint naval exercise

Kochi, July 13 (UNI) CPI(M) Polit bureau member Sitaram Yechury today said India's proposed joint naval exercise with the US, Japan and Australia would jeopardise the 'Look East policy' and the relations with ASEAN countries and China.

Speaking at a 'Meet the Press' programme here, he said ''the UPA government was bound by the Common Minimum Programme to boost relationships with individual countries, rather than become part of any grouping.'' Mr Yechury said India becoming part of any global or regional grouping would adversely affect the powerful 'Look East policy' as good relations with ASEAN countries were a key element of the policy.

This kind of policy with groupings, which was not in the interest of India, would be detrimental to the bilateral relationship with China, he added.

He said his party would raise the issue of naval exercise in the next session of Parliament.

Mr Yechury was reacting to reports that India would hold its biggest naval exercise with the US, Japan, Australia and Singapore in the Bay of Bengal this September.

Regarding the ongoing negotiations for the civilian nuclear deal with the US, he said the country should not compromise on the 'nine-points', stated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the floor of Parliament.

''It is learnt that the nuclear deal is stuck on two issues -- reprocessing of used nuclear fuel and India's commitment not to conduct any nuclear tests...In the nuclear deal, India should have the power to reprocess the spent nuclear fuel, otherwise the country would be saddled with nuclear waste, which could be a disaster for the whole region. Besides, there should also be no commitment from India that it won't conduct any nuclear tests in the future.

The decision to conduct nuclear tests or not should be ours and it cannot be imposed by any country through a deal,'' he said.

UNI