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Nuclear deal is not on, Indian Gov't will tell US soon
ABUJA (NIGERIA): This is the final confirmation, if any were needed, that the UPA government has put the nuclear deal on hold in favour of keeping the government alive. Top government sources said India will soon formally tell the US that it will not be able to take the next step on the nuclear deal.The sources said that the UPA government, in the aftermath of the October 9 meeting with the Left parties, will convey to the US that it will not be approaching the IAEA for a safeguards agreement. This also makes it plain that on October 22, when the UPA-Left panel is supposed to hold its last round of discussions on the deal, the government will not even try to persuade the Left to allow the negotiations with IAEA. According to the timeline for completing the rest of the nuclear deal, India has to conclude a safeguards agreement with the IAEA working up to an exemption from the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and a final approval of the US Congress. That process now stands scuttled. After trying to persuade the Left, without success, the PM and Sonia Gandhi publicly gave in on Friday, saving the government by jettisoning the nuclear deal. IAEA director Mohammed ElBaradei was also informed by the UPA leadership during his visit here that India will not formally approach the UN nuclear watchdog for a safeguards agreement. The government switched gears abruptly. Till early last week, the government was clearly preparing to take the next steps on the deal the term of Indias ambassador to the IAEA, Sheelkant Sharma, had been extended by a few months and the DAE chief, Anil Kakodkar, had been given an extra two years. PM Manmohan Singh, who had reasons to be upset over the setback to the deal on which he had staked so much, did not interact with the media during the nine-and-a-half hour long flight to the Nigerian capital. Posted by: john frum 2007-10-14 |
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