Statement
by External Affairs Minister (EAM) of India Shri
Pranab Mukherjee on the
Civil Nuclear Initiative
Sep 5, 2008
To reiterate India’s stand
on disarmament and nonproliferation, EAM has made the following statement:
A Plenary meeting of the
Nuclear Suppliers Group to consider an exception for India
from its guidelines to allow for full civil nuclear cooperation with India is being held in Vienna from September 4 – 5, 2008.
India has a long-standing and
steadfast commitment to universal, non-discriminatory and total elimination of
nuclear weapons. The vision of a world free of nuclear weapons which Shri Rajiv Gandhi put before the
UN in 1988 still has universal resonance.
We approach our dialogue
with the Nuclear Suppliers Group and all its members in a spirit of cooperation
that allows for an ongoing frank exchange of views on subjects of mutual
interest and concern. Such a dialogue will strengthen our relationship in the
years to come.
Our civil nuclear
initiative will strengthen the international non-proliferation regime. India believes that the opening of full civil
nuclear cooperation will be good for India and for the world. It will
have a profound positive impact on global energy security and international
efforts to combat climate change.
India has recently submitted a
Working Paper on Nuclear Disarmament to the UN General Assembly, containing
initiatives on nuclear disarmament. These include the reaffirmation of the
unequivocal commitment of all nuclear weapon States to the goal of complete
elimination of nuclear weapons; negotiation of a Convention on the complete
prohibition of the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons; and negotiation of
a Nuclear Weapons Convention prohibiting the development, production,
stockpiling and use of nuclear weapons and on their destruction, leading to the
global, non-discriminatory and verifiable elimination of nuclear weapons within
a specified timeframe.
We remain committed to a
voluntary, unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing. We do not subscribe to any
arms race, including a nuclear arms race. We have always tempered the exercise
of our strategic autonomy with a sense of global responsibility. We affirm our
policy of no-first-use of nuclear weapons.
We are committed to work
with others towards the conclusion of a multilateral Fissile Material Cut-off
Treaty in the Conference on Disarmament that is universal, non-discriminatory
and verifiable.
India has an impeccable
non-proliferation record. We have in place an effective and comprehensive system
of national export controls, which has been constantly updated to meet the
highest international standards. This is manifested in the enactment of the
Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems Act in 2005. India has taken
the necessary steps to secure nuclear materials and technology through
comprehensive export control legislation and through harmonization and
committing to adhere to Missile Technology Control Regime and Nuclear Suppliers
Group guidelines.
India will not be the source
of proliferation of sensitive technologies, including enrichment and
reprocessing transfers. We stand for the strengthening of the non-proliferation
regime. We support international efforts to limit the spread of ENR equipment
or technologies to states that do not have them. We will work together with the
international community to advance our common objective of non-proliferation.
In this regard, India is
interested in participating as a supplier nation, particularly for
Thorium-based fuel and in establishment of international fuel banks, which also
benefit India.
India places great value on
the role played by the IAEA’s nuclear safeguards
system. We look forward to working with the IAEA in implementing the
India-specific Safeguards Agreement concluded with the IAEA. In keeping with
our commitment to sign and adhere to an Additional Protocol with respect to India’s civil
nuclear facilities, we are working closely with the IAEA to ensure early
conclusion of an Additional Protocol to the Safeguards Agreement.
New Delhi
5th September 2008
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Press Releases
Ministry of External
Affairs, New Delhi