Why does nuclear India interest the US?

US insistence on its nuclear cooperation deal with India comes at a time when Washington is calling for the imposition of UN Security Council punitive measures against Iran. While Iran is a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the additional protocol, former US ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, has justified American nuclear dealings with India because of the country's reluctance to sign the NPT. Washington's policy to reward India with nuclear technology has come under fire even in the United States.

New Delhi conducted its first nuclear test in 1974 and has since achieved nuclear weapons capability. Some experts in America say the recent nuclear agreement exposes US violation of international laws.

"It is now going to be tough to argue that Iran and North Korea should be denied nuclear technology while India, which has failed to even join the Non-Proliferation Treaty, is given the same technology on a silver platter," says Christopher Flavin, president of the Washington-based global affairs research institute Worldwatch.

"What is happening is that, with this deal, the US has itself become the biggest proliferator of nuclear technology," Kamal Mitra Chenoy, professor at the School of International Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, has told IPS News.

"The only difference is that what the US is practicing is selective proliferation... The US and India are now partners in violating international law by not involving the International Atomic Energy Agency," he added.

Senator Richard Lugar, who chairs the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has also touched on the issue, saying that India has "violated bilateral pledges it made to Washington not to use US-supplied nuclear materials for weapon purposes."

In the Congress, Representatives Ed Markey (Democrat for Michigan) and Fred Upton (Republican for Minnesota) have introduced a bipartisan resolution -H. Con. Res. 318- which expresses strong concern about the US-India nuclear deal.

The resolution reaffirms humanitarian and scientific support for India but warns that nuclear cooperation between the two nations may pose serious dangers.

According to the resolution, the supply of nuclear fuel to New Delhi could contribute to the expansion of India's nuclear weapons arsenal. The resolution condemns the transfer of nuclear technology to any country that is not a signatory party to the NPT.

As NPT signatory states, the US and other nuclear powers have all pledged "not in any way to assist" the acquisition of nuclear arms by non-nuclear-weapon states.

Nuclear experts in Washington claim that India is a non-nuclear-weapon state by the NPT definition and say that the deal will put the US in violation of the treaty. It is also another example of the notorious US double standard approach toward the Muslim world, which according to US criteria, is not even allowed to have peaceful nuclear technology.

Although it is not entirely known why Israel and India are allowed to develop nuclear weapons, many right-wing US strategists as well as supporters of Israeli interests in the Middle East may be seeking to establish a foothold in energy-hungry India by awarding the country nuclear technology.

According to Worldwatch, nuclear power now provides for only 3% percent of the electricity needs of India. When the 30 new nuclear plants sought by New Delhi are completed over the next two decades, uranium enrichment will only be able to provide for a mere 5% of the country´s electricity needs and 2% of its total energy needs.

To resolve its energy problems, New Delhi has held talks with Tehran on the construction of a pipeline to transport Iranian gas to India. The country has also signed crude agreements with oil-rich Arab states, including Saudi Arabia.

After the 9/11 attacks, Washington looked upon New Delhi as an important potential ally. The relationship quickly flourished and by late 2002 Indian and American officials began talking of "strategic partnership." A recent Pentagon report has described India as a "key strategic partner".

The Pentagon report clarifies that the US administration would like India to help the US by holding joint military exercises and by purchasing advanced US weaponry. Since 2001 both nations have carried out 35 joint military exercises.

While the US is seen by many as a major player in destabilizing the Middle East and East Asia, some Indian analysts believe Washington and New Delhi do not have as many common interests as claimed by US policymakers. There still remains one question. Why does the US insist on having nuclear dealings with India?

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