Salient features of 123 agreement between India and US

New Delhi, Aug 3 (UNI) Following are the salient features of the 123 Agreement signed between India and the US on civil nuclear energy cooperation.

-- Nuclear material, equipment and components transferred pursuant to the Agreement and nuclear material and by-product material used in or produced through the use of any nuclear material, equipment and components so transferred should not be used by the recipient party for any nuclear device, for research on or development of any nuclear device or for any military purpose.

-- The United States is willing to incorporate assurances regarding fuel asupply in the bilateral India-US agreement on peaceful uses of nuclear energy which would be submitted to the US Congress.

-- The United States will join India in seeking to negotiate with the IAEA an India-specific fuel supply agreement.

-- The United States will support an Indian effort to develop a strategic reserve of nuclear fuel to guard against any disruption of supply in the lifetime of India's reactors.

-- If despite these arrangements, a disruption of fuel supplies occurred, the US and India would jointly convene a group of friendly supplier countries including Russia, UK and France, to pursue measures to restore fuel supplies to India.

-- An India-specific 'safeguards agreement' would be negotiated between India and the IAEA, providing for safeguards to guard against withdrawal of safeguarded nuclear material from civilian use at any time as well as providing for corrective measures that India may take to ensure uninterrupted operation of its civilian nuclear reactors in the event of disruption of foreign fuel supplies. Taking this into account, India would place its civilian nuclear facilities under India-specific safeguards in perpetuity and negotiate an appropriate safeguards agreement with the IAEA.

-- The nuclear material and equipment transferred to India by the US pursuant to the agreement and any nuclear material used in or produced through the use of nuclear material, non nuclear material, equipment or components so transferred shall be subject to safeguards in perpetuity in accordance with the India-specific Safeguards Agreement between India and the IAEA and an additional protocol, when in force.

-- Under the Agreement, India would establish a new national re-processing facility dedicated to re-processing safeguarded nuclear material under IAEA safeguards and the two countries will agree on arrangements and procedures under which such re-processing will take place in this new facility.

-- The provisions of the agreement will not be used to interfere with the nuclear plicy or programmes for the promotion of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy including research and development.

-- The agreement which remain in force for 40 years, and continue thereafter for an additional period of ten years each.

-- Either country will have the right to terminate the Agreement prior to its expiration on one year's written notice to the other country. The Agreement would terminate one year from the date of the written notice. The country seeking termination would cease further cooperation if it determined that a mutually-acceptable solution of outstanding issues had not been possible or could not be achieved through consultations. If a country seeking termination, cited violation of IAEA safeguards agreement as the reason, a crucial factor would be whether the IAEA Board of Governors had found non-compliance. Following the termination, either Party would have the right to require the return of any nuclear or non-nuclear material or component through consultations. However, efforts would have to be made to resolve any dispute through negotiations.

UNI