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India, Canada negotiating nuclear deal
Having backed India at the NSG for a waiver that ended its nuclear isolation, Canada is now negotiating a comprehensive atomic deal with the country which will allow New Delhi to develop civilian nuclear power plants.Both sides had "informal" discussions in this regard last month and expect to schedule formal sessions soon, Canadian Foreign Office spokesperson Lisa Monette told PTI. She said Canada signalled its support for India's re-engagement with the broader nuclear-energy community when it backed the Nuclear Suppliers Group's decision on a waiver to India. "India is a responsible democracy that shares with Canada the fundamental values of freedom, democracy, human rights and respect for the rule of law," she said. "India has made substantial non-proliferation and disarmament commitments to achieve the trust of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, which were reiterated in a political statement on September 5." Monette said Canada and India have longstanding bilateral ties, built upon shared values of democracy and pluralism and strong people-to-people links. In recent years, both countries have been working to enhance bilateral cooperation in a number of areas of mutual priority, she noted. The 2005 Canada-India Joint Statement reaffirmed Canada and India's commitment to deepen their bilateral dialogue on key global issues and enhance their cooperation in areas of mutual priority, including regional security and counter-terrorism; science and technology; the environment; bilateral trade and investment; and people-to-people links, Monette said. Posted by: john frum 2008-11-15 |
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