Nuclear Suppliers Group(NSG) Entry

The euphoria generated by the 2008 Indo-US nuclear deal and the NSG waiver has been tempered as a result of later developments. The road to finalising nuclear power plant projects is filled with obstacles and potholes, including public opposition to nuclear plant sites, liability issues, and nuclear safety concerns, as highlighted by the Fukushima disaster.

International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and agreements involving India

Nuclear Suppliers Group(NSG) Entry

China refuses to budge, says India must sign NPT to gain entry into NSG

International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Important International Institutions

Note4students

Mains Paper 2: IR | Bilateral, regional & global groupings & agreements involving India &/or affecting India’s interests

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

Prelims level:  Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), MTCR, Australia Group

Mains level: Importance of joining NSG and other export control regimes by India

News

  • P5 countries have recently concluded their meetings to discuss issues related to nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

China maintains Status-quo

  1. China has once again refused to dilute its stand on India’s entry into the elite Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
  2. It asserted that New Delhi must sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty to gain entry as there is no precedent for the inclusion of non-NPT countries.

Reasons cited

  1. China has been opposing India’s entry into the 48-member NSG on the ground that India is not a signatory to the NPT.
  2. The other P5 members, including the US and Russia backed its case based on New Delhi’s non-proliferation record.
  3. China along with P5 has decided to uphold the NPT mechanism.

Pakistan: the elephant in the room

  1. China has sought to club India and Pakistan together, on the basis of both being non-signatories of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
  2. It has asked the NSG countries to adopt a “criteria-based approach” — which essentially means that either both can get into the group or none.
  3. But most of the NSG countries, including the US, France and UK, make a clear distinction between India and Pakistan’s nuclear non-proliferation track record.

Why NSG for India?

  1. The NSG is the top club of countries which controls access to technology and guards against proliferation. Its membership is important for India to access cutting-edge high technology.
  2. Pakistan has violated all norms of nuclear non-proliferation and had links with the North Korean nuclear programme.

Back2Basics

P5+1 Countries

  1. The P5+1 refers to the UN Security Council’s five permanent members (the P5); namely China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States; plus Germany.
  2. It is a group of six world powers which, in 2006, joined together in diplomatic efforts with Iran with regard to its nuclear program.
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