India, Canada sign civil nuclear deal

PM-CANADA

V S Chandrasekar & Bal Krishna
Toronto, Jun 28 (PTI) Breaking new grounds in their
bilateral relationship, India and Canada Monday signed a civil
nuclear cooperation agreement and strongly condemned terrorism
in all its forms and manifestations.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the first Indian
Head of the Government to visit Canada after I K Gujral's trip
here 16 years ago, and his counterpart Stephen Harper hailed
the signature of the nuclear agreement after their one-on-one
and delegation level talks that will provide for cooperation
in civil nuclear energy including import of uranium and
equipment from Canada.
The civil nuclear agreement was signed by Srikumar
Banerjee, Secretary, Department of Atomic Energy and Canadian
Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon in the presence of the two
Prime Ministers.
The deal also envisages cooperation in fields of
nuclear waste management and radiation safety.
The agreement assumes significance in the context of
Canada's strong attitude in the past when it slaped sanctions
against India after the Pokhran I and II tests in 1974 and
1998.
A joint statement issued at the end of the meeting
said the two Prime Ministers committed themselves to the
ratification of the agreement and completion of all remaining
steps necessary to ensure its early implementation.
They underscored the potential for mutually beneficial
civil nuclear cooperation and trade.
The two Prime Ministers solemnly observed the occasion
of the 25th anniversary of bombing of Air India flight 182
'Kanishka' on June 23, 1985 that killed 329 people on board.
Only a few days Harper apologised to the families of
the victims of the disaster for "institutional failures" of
the government and promised some form of compensation to them.
In his remarks to the media, the Prime Minister made a
reference to his Canada visit coinciding with the 25th
anniversary of the Kanishka aircrash.
"This terrible disaster and the suffering it has led
to will forever remain a stark reminder of the need for all
of us to work unitedly to eliminate the scourge of terrorism.
The victims of this tragedy deserve full justice," he said.
(More) PTI VSC/BK
MRD


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