NEW DELHI: National security adviser M K Narayanan, a key negotiator of the Indo-US nuke deal, is optimistic that China will not oppose a “clean waiver” for India when the Nuclear Suppliers Group meet later this month to consider the issue.
He says he hopes China will go along with the other major powers. The big five in the nuclear club are US, Russia, UK, France and China. The first four countries have always supported the nuclear agreement, but India was not sure about China. Now, India appears confident that Beijing will not stop the party.
In an interview which appeared in the Straits Times on Saturday, Narayanan said: “We can go by what people say and their body language. President Hu Jintao and premier
Wen Jiabao, at every meeting they have had with the PM when the issue was raised, have indicated that they will not be a problem…That happens when they meet and even in telephone conversations. Pakistan did its damnedest to block the IAEA but China took a very correct position.”
The NSA praised IAEA chief Mohammed El Baradei who put up a “stellar performance” to convince the skeptics that the nuclear deal was not just good for India but for the world.
Narayanan said some members at the NSF would raise objections because of their non-proliferation concerns.
“Most of them recognise that the major constraint in our nation’s progress is absence of clean energy and energy at affordable prices. That’s the line we have projected and it has gone down well with 95% of the countries. We have a small number worried about non-proliferation. If we can get over that, we are over the hill,” Narayanan said. He was referring to countries such as Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Austria and New Zealand.
New Delhi has already sent senior envoys to the capitals of these countries to win their support. He said the US, France and other countries supportive of the deal will have to convince some of these skeptics.
Narayanan also mentioned that worries about a ban on future testing were unwarranted. “Much has been made of the issue of testing. We have a voluntary moratorium. We have no intention of breaking that moratorium unless circumstances compel us. If circumstances compel - whether 123 agreement existed or not - we would do it because it is in our supreme national interest. I think it is a non-issue.”
