U.S. House of Representatives Approves U.S.- India Nuclear Deal
27 July 2006
Majority vote favors greater civil nuclear cooperation
Washington – By an overwhelming majority, the U.S. House of Representatives voted for the proposed U.S.-India civil nuclear agreement, the first step in the approval process of the groundbreaking deal.
The July 26 vote was 359 in favor and 68 opposed to the agreement that would allow India to buy fuel and nuclear reactors from the United States to develop cleaner energy resources. As a first step toward civil nuclear cooperation, the Bush administration is asking Congress to adopt an India-specific amendment to the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 that would allow India to be treated as a country in good standing with the international nuclear nonproliferation regime for the purposes of trade in nuclear technology and materials. (See related article.)
President Bush quickly issued a statement commending the vote. “This historic action by the House of Representatives is another important step toward building a new strategic partnership between the United States and India,” he said.
Besides helping India meet its “enormous energy needs,” he said, “this initiative also advances U.S. non-proliferation objectives by bringing India into the international non-proliferation mainstream.”
India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and has had nuclear capabilities since 1974. Fearing a South Asian nuclear arms race between India and its neighbor Pakistan, the United States placed a moratorium on sales of nuclear technology and fuel to India for more than 30 years. Pakistan, also not a signatory to the NPT, successfully tested nuclear weapons in 1998.
Opponents to the agreement maintain that an arms race remains a threat. Attempts to introduce amendments that would restrict India from using its domestically produced uranium for weapons and stop its manufacture of weapons-related fissile material failed.
The Bush administration proposed the civil nuclear cooperation agreement as a means to bring India into the non-proliferation regime. The deal would be complete only after India makes its civilian nuclear facilities accessible to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors. The terms of the inspections are currently being negotiated. India must also agree to forego future nuclear tests and join the United States and other nations in restricting nuclear exports.
“As it is crafted, it represents a judicious balancing of competing priorities,” said Henry J. Hyde, chairman of the House International Relations Committee. “[T]his deal would improve international nuclear security. At the same time, it will expand relations between the U.S. and one of the most important emerging nations in the world.”
The Nuclear Suppliers Group, a voluntary organization of more than 40 countries that seeks to regulate the export and transfer of nuclear-related material must also agree to allow nuclear sales to India.
The next step is the U.S. Senate, where the bill is expected to come up for vote later in 2006. In pursuing the U.S.-India nuclear agreement, the Bush administration must negotiate a bilateral agreement with India governing the proposed nuclear trade. After all the details of the agreement are fine-tuned by the United States and India, this so-called 123 Agreement then would be submitted to Congress for approval. Section 123 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 establishes an agreement for cooperation as a prerequisite for significant nuclear cooperation with any nation.
In order for a bill to become law, it must be approved by the committee and identical versions of the bill must be passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Once a bill is passed by Congress, it still requires the president’s signature to take effect.
For more information, see U.S.-India: Strengthening a Global Partnership.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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