MICS - India Shekhar Kulshreshtha
Deal All NSG countries members of IAEA, so briefing to address their concerns
NEW DELHI, JULY 14: Moving fast on the India-specific safeguards agreement, the International Atomic Energy Agency has called for a board of governors meeting on August 1 to take up the issue. And in the run-up to that meeting, India plans to hold a special briefing for all IAEA member-states on July 18 in Vienna, three days before the House meets for the trust vote.
It’s learnt that India has already asked IAEA to intimate member states about this open briefing to which all are invited to seek answers or clarify doubts about the document as well as on broader issues. In fact, there is a possibility that Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon could go for the meeting although a final decision is yet to be taken.
Given that all 45 NSG countries are also members of the IAEA but not necessarily on the 35-member board of governors, India’s open briefing is a clear sign of stepping up diplomatic efforts before the board meeting. For, it is expected to help address all NSG members making it easier for them to take a decision whenever the NSG is convened.
India had confirmed the safeguards agreement with IAEA on July 8 and it was circulated the next day among all members. Having got over a week to study the details, the members will be in a position on July 18 to enter into a “fruitful discussion” on the issue, sources said. More importantly, it will allow the Indian side to present its case and lobby for support.
As for the board of governors meeting, sources said, the IAEA secretariat had already conveyed it to all board members and while confirmation is still awaited from all countries, indications are that the date is acceptable as sufficient groundwork was done before proposing the date. This will allow IAEA to finish its task just as the vacation month of August starts.
Top officials said the urgency shown by the IAEA is also reflective of the commitment of IAEA Director General Mohammed ElBaradei to the nuclear deal. The agreement, which is now public, also shows that the agency was accommodating to Indian concerns and accepted references into the text that are unique to any safeguards agreement. Key among them is the non-hindrance clause which commits IAEA to not involve itself with India’s military programme while implementing the safeguards agreement.
In effect, this acknowledges India’s nuclear weapon programme which is a rare exception. Besides this, IAEA has also allowed India to build a strategic fuel reserve for the lifetime supply of fuel to its reactors.
This moves away from the general IAEA principle to allow only that much amount of fuel needed for reasonable reactor requirements. Hectic diplomatic efforts will continue on the margins of all the politics with US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns expected to visit India right after the UPA government faces the vote of confidence.
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