Bush Officials Oppose Amending India Nuclear Deal

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration on Wednesday warned against efforts to impose new conditions on a controversial civilian nuclear power agreement with India saying such amendments would be "deal breakers."

The landmark U.S.-India accord reached on July 18 would grant New Delhi access to nuclear technology it has been denied for more than two decades, but prominent critics complain it undermines non-proliferation goals and should be tightened up.

"We would urge both Congress and our international partners to avoid the temptation to renegotiate the deal," said Undersecretary of State Robert Joseph, the top U.S. non-proliferation official.

"Based on our interaction with the Indian government, we believe such additional conditions would likely prove to be dealbreakers," he told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

For 25 years the United States led the global fight to deny India access to nuclear technology because it developed nuclear weapons and tested them.

But President George W. Bush, aiming to improve ties with the world's largest democracy, jettisoned this approach in the July 18 agreement permitting civilian U.S.-India nuclear cooperation.

He wants changes in U.S. law -- which must be enacted by the U.S. Congress -- and international regulations -- decided by the 44-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group -- to let India get restricted items, including nuclear fuel.

But many congressmen and experts worry the accord benefits India excessively and should be amended to place other requirements on New Delhi, like halting production of fissile material, which can be used in nuclear weapons.

"This is a case where the perfect is the enemy of the good and we must resist the temptation to pile on conditions," Joseph said.

He argued it is better to lock India into the agreement as written and then work to achieve additional non-proliferation objectives over time as U.S.-India ties continue to improve.

Joseph said the deal advances U.S. goals to halt the spread of nuclear weapons because it commits India to international non-proliferation standards for the first time,

This includes a commitment to full-scope safeguards, meaning India will submit to inspections of its civilian nuclear facilities by the International Atomic Energy Agency.

While the agreement in effect recognizes India as the sixth nuclear weapon state, Joseph said India will not have the same freedom as the five official nuclear weapons states to designate which nuclear facilities must face inspections.

The nuclear weapons states are the United States, China, Russia, France and Britain.

Separating Facilities

A centerpiece of the deal would have India separate its military and civilian nuclear facilities so the United States and other countries can be sure that nuclear cooperation with the civilian energy sector does not also benefit India's weapons programs.

Undersecretary of State R. Nicholas Burns, chief negotiator of the burgeoning U.S. relationship with India, said his visit to New Delhi two weeks ago confirmed it will take time for India to fulfill its commitments, including developing a plan for separating its nuclear facilities.

Hence Bush will not ask Congress to approve legislative changes needed to implement the U.S. side of the deal until perhaps as late as April, after India takes further concrete steps, he said.

Committee Chairman Richard Lugar of Indiana, a Republican, and the panel's senior Democrat, Joseph Biden of Delaware, raised many questions about the deal but were not nearly as critical as their counterparts in the U.S. House of Representatives International Relations Committee.

Lugar called India's nuclear record "unsatisfying" while Biden said: "I wonder how good the July 18 deal really is."