US to object to Sino-Pak nuclear deal

Lalit K Jha
Washington, Jun 15 (PTI) The Obama administration has
decided to object to a Sino-Pak civilian nuclear deal for
establishing two atomic reactors in Pakistan, as it comes
before the Nuclear Suppliers Group next week.
Experts have said that the deal appears to be
violating international guidelines forbidding nuclear exports
to countries that have not signed the nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty or do not have international
safeguards on reactors.
The Sino-Pak nuclear deal is expected to come up
before the 46-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) meeting
next week in New Zealand, the Washington Post reported
Tuesday.
State Department spokesman Gordon DuGuid said the US
government "has reiterated to the Chinese government that the
United States expects Beijing to cooperate with Pakistan in
ways consistent with Chinese nonproliferation obligations".
In a recent article, a prominent American nuclear
expert believes this would breach international protocol about
the trade of nuclear equipment and material.
"The move would breach international protocol about
the trade of nuclear equipment and material," Mark Hibbs said
in the latest issue of the prestigious Foreign Policy
magazine.
The China National Nuclear Corporation is financing
for two new reactors at Chashma in Pakistan's Punjab province.
The Post said China has suggested the sale is
grandfathered from the time before it joined the NSG in 2004,
because it was completing work on two earlier reactors for
Pakistan at the time.
However, US officials said any such proposal would
require a consensus approval by the NSG.
"Additional nuclear cooperation with Pakistan beyond
those specific projects that were grandfathered in 2004 would
require consensus approval" by the NSG, a US official was
quoted as saying, and added that this the US believes "is
extremely unlikely".
Interestingly, China had initially objected to the
Indo-US civil nuclear deal, saying it would undermine the
global non-proliferation regime. Beijing finally came around
to support the agreement in the NSG, apparently under US
pressure.
The Indo-US nuclear agreement was signed in 2009 after
a long-drawn process, including a crucial NSG waiver, and
passage through both the Indian and American legislatures. PTI
LKJ
MRD


The information contained in this electronic message and any attachments to this
message are intended for the exclusive
use of the addressee(s) and may contain proprietary, confidential or privileged
information. If you are not the intended
recipient, you should not disseminate, distribute or copy this e-mail. Please
notify the sender immediately and destroy
all copies of this message and any attachments contained in it.


Delete & Prev | Delete & Next