NEW DELHI: "An agreement for peaceful nuclear cooperation with India approved by [the U.S.] Congress according to the procedures and conditions of this conference report would be a powerful incentive for India to cooperate closely with the United States in halting proliferation and abstaining from additional tests of nuclear weapons," said a joint statement issued by the House-Senate Conference Committee on H.R. 5682, the bill which provides for civilian nuclear cooperation with New Delhi.

As this quote from the House-Senate conferees' statement shows, the U.S. Congress believes that the terms of cooperation will actually serve as a disincentive for India to test a nuclear weapon again. There is no longer any need for interpretation — it has been put down in black and white.

Extracts from the joint statement, posted on the web site of Richard Lugar, outgoing Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said: "The conferees believe that the conference agreement will help solidify New Delhi's commitments to implement strong export controls, separate its civilian nuclear infrastructure from its weapons program, and place additional civilian facilities under IAEA safeguards...

"The conferees, along with both Houses, place great emphasis on their expectation that India's full cooperation with efforts by the U.S. and the international community to prevent Iran from acquiring the capability to produce nuclear weapons will be forthcoming."

So, other than ensuring that the costs of an Indian nuclear test will be too high, the statement makes clear the American legislators' emphasis on ensuring India's "full cooperation" against Iran.

Civilian nuclear cooperation, the joint statement makes clear, is not restricted to tailoring India's behaviour in the nuclear field but extends to a larger strategic game envisaged by the U.S.

Cold War

"With the fading of the Cold War's global divisions and the rise of new challenges such as globalisation and transnational terrorism, there is increasing recognition in both the United States and in India that significant benefits may be obtained from closer cooperation across a broad spectrum of activities and policies.

"These range from shared strategic interests, such as enhanced stability and security in South Asia and the international system as a whole, to more specific priorities, including greater effectiveness in combating the AIDS epidemic, combating terrorism, and preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, among others... "

Close relationship

According to the statement, the Bush administration's decision to establish an increasingly close relationship with this country of enormous potential and its declaration that the U.S. welcomes India's advancement as a major economic and political player on the world stage "represent a new and significant strategic opportunity to advance U.S. goals."

"India has the potential to become a valued partner in countering the rise of extremism around the world as both countries can cooperate to promote religious pluralism, tolerance, and democratic freedoms. As a country with well-entrenched democratic traditions and the world's second largest Muslim population, India can set an example of a multi-religious and multi-cultural democracy in an otherwise volatile region," the statement added.

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