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Let's talk about NPT, India tells the world

Tara Shankar Sahay in New Delhi

India has told leaders around the world, including Russian President Boris Yeltsin, that while trying to improve relations with its neighbours including China and Pakistan, it is willing to reconsider some provisions of the international non-proliferation regime in order to take care of its security needs.

According to senior officials at South Block, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has reiterated New Delhi's stance vis-à-vis its security concerns. They pointed out that while he has already announced a moratorium on further nuclear tests, New Delhi has genuine reasons to be apprehensive about the regional security situation and, therefore, it is only willing to sign those provisions of the international non-proliferation regime which help it take care of its security concerns.

Indian missions abroad have approached other world leaders to apprise them of New Delhi's stance. The Indian ambassador to the US, Naresh Chandra, on Saturday met some US Congressmen including Benjamin Gillian and Sonny Calaghan to explain why India conducted the recent underground nuclear tests at Pokhran. Chandra sought the support of these Congressmen to persuade the Clinton administration not to impose sanctions on India in the wake of its recent nuclear tests.

Meanwhile, more and more support for India has poured in from around the world. Nicaraguan strongman Daniel Ortega has criticised the US for its sanctions on India following its nuclear tests. Ortega pointed out that considering that the US itself was a nuclear power with thousands of nuclear weapons, it had no moral right to slap sanctions on India.

Various other leaders around the world have already said the US sanctions against India are unjustified.

Senior government officials pointed out that the recent telephonic conversation between Bill Clinton and Yeltsin should not be misunderstood in India. They said as one of the five nuclear powers, Russia was obliged to ask India to sign the various international laws pertaining to the non-proliferation regime. But as echoed by the Russian ambassador to India, Albert Chernyshev, Moscow is ready to acknowledge India as a nuclear weapon state provided it signed the relevant international laws.

It was pointed out that Russia was consistently being pressurised by the US and its North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies to force India to sign the CTBT, NPT and FMCT. However, unlike these Western countries, Russia had appreciated New Delhi's concerns about its security and was fulfilling its obligations as a strategic partner, they stressed.

It was pointed out that Russia had upgraded its priorities by moving up India from the seventh to the fourth position in its international list of priorities.

It was explained that the US's pressure on Moscow was the result of billions of dollars of (economic) aid which Washington continued to give to Moscow.

However, Moscow does not want to endanger Russia's security which it perceives can come about with an eastward push of NATO. It was underscored that Russia's former allies -- the Czech republic, Hungary and Slovakia -- have already opted to enter the NATO fold, and Moscow does not want it to push any further eastward. It is in this context that India also supports Russia, it was pointed out.

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