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India is willing to discuss proliferation, CTBT terms

India is prepared to discuss a number of issues relating to the international nuclear non-proliferation regime with other countries, and has indicated its willingness to adhere to some of the provisions of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, official sources said today.

This was a sign of India's bona fides and the seriousness of its intent to eliminate weapons of destruction, the sources added.

They said India's commitment to nuclear disarmament remained undiluted, the nuclear tests conducted by it notwithstanding.

The sources said since the CTBT did not address India's security concerns, it was willing to engage in negotiations on adhering to certain provisions of the treaty ''but not in a political vacuum''. The sources declined to spell out the provisions which India was willing to consider.

They recalled that except India, no other country had consistently called for a total ban on nuclear testing and elimination of nuclear weapons since 1954, when there were only 60 nuclear warheads.

They said India had opposed the signing of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty because it divided the world into haves and have-nots by imposing obligations on the non-nuclear weapon states. In 1982, India had called for a nuclear freeze and since 1988 had been championing the cause of total elimination of nuclear weapons in a time-bound framework.

UNI

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