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INDIA ON US UNDERGROUND NUCLEAR TEST

July 1997

Government has taken note of the "sub-critical" underground nuclear test conducted by the USA on July 2, 1997, and are concerned that this has been justified "as an activity permitted under the CTBT":

During the course of the CTBT negotiations, India had repeatedly stated that a credible CTBT must be a first step in the process of nuclear disarmament. India had also conveyed to the international community that the CTBT should end all testing activity that was aimed at developing and refining of nuclear weapons. In fact, we had put forward concrete proposals to ensure that CTBT would be a genuinely comprehensive test ban treaty. It is a matter of regret that, as it has now emerged, the CTBT contains loopholes which are exploited by some countries to continue their testing activity, using more sophisticated and advanced techniques. Such activity, which takes place in established underground nuclear weapon testing sites and is unverifiable, despite the elaborate verification mechanism otherwise envisaged under the CTBT, demonstrates the nuclear weapon states' continued reliance on nuclear weapons and their programme to further develop and refine nuclear weapons technology.

India has consistently pointed out that the CTBT, without being placed in the context of a phased programme for global nuclear disarmament, serves only a discriminatory non-proliferation intent rather than the urgent goal of global nuclear disarmament. India further reiterates that mere non-proliferation arrangements as are now manifest, do not take into account our legitimate security concerns. This has been stated at the highest levels and is a position maintained consistently by India for more than three decades. Recent developments confirm the validity of India's concerns expressed during the CTBT negotiations, as well as our eventual decision last year that India could not be a party to such a treaty.

India, it may be said, remains committed to achieving genuine global nuclear disarmament in a comprehensive and non-discriminatory manner. India believes that a nuclear weapon-free world will enhance our national security as well as global security. Such a process, in order to be meaningful, can be based only upon genuine multilateral negotiations aimed at developing a phased programme for elimination of all nuclear weapons within a specified time-frame.