India has a 'natural global partnership' with US, says PM.
'The RSS, that advocated military strength, remained in the ideological doghouse for over half a century. Many of the RSS' responses even today carry the burden of this past,' points out Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Not subscribing to the view that the Indo-US nuclear deal is dead, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday said he was still hopeful of the deal. "I hope good sense will prevail. I am negotiating in good faith," the Prime Minister said. His remarks came in the midst of government's renewed bid to enlist the support of Left parties for going ahead with securing the India-specific safeguards agreement with the IAEA.
Major powers including Britain and France said the agreement would benefit the non-proliferation regime.
Pakistan did not oppose the George W Bush administration's move to ink a civil nuclear agreement with India because it expected it would receive a similar deal from the United States, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has said.
He said during the talks, he explained to the Hungarian Foreign Minister that Pakistan, a declared nuclear state, has a transparent system to ensure strict check on proliferation.
India and Russia are expected to sign a nuclear deal for the construction of four additional reactors at the Kudankulam nuclear power plant and expansion of other sites during Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's three-day visit to New Delhi beginning Thursday, a top official has said."We plan to sign on Friday an inter-governmental agreement with India to build another four reactors for the Kudankulam nuclear power plant, and envisaging cooperation," said a Russian official.
More than 130 experts and non-governmental organisations from 23 countries have criticised the Ind0-US nuclear deal, saying its proposal to exempt India from the long-standing global nuclear trade standards "would damage the already fragile nuclear nonproliferation system and set back efforts to achieve universal nuclear disarmament".
The White House on Thursday stated that United States President Donald Trump is 'extremely frustrated' with both Russia and Ukraine over the slow progress toward ending the ongoing war and is unwilling to engage in 'meetings just for the sake of meeting'.
US President Donald Trump has claimed that India and Pakistan "made peace" in May after he threatened to snap trade deals with them if they continued their military conflict.
Trump described the agreement as the "worst" and "one-sided transactions" that America has ever entered into.
'If the BJP detoxifies the nuclear liability law, it will bring economic, environmental and, most of all, strategic benefits.' 'Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope that this Budget promise is met soon -- ideally, before Mr Modi heads to his first meeting with Trump 2.0,' observes Shekhar Gupta.
PM Modi and his Japanese counterpart are likely to sign several agreements, including on civil nuclear cooperation. Both leaders are also likely to discuss defence cooperation, including joint maritime exercises between Japan, India and the United States.
Key provisions of the Indo-US nuclear deal.
Backing New Delhi's quest for a permanent seat in the UNSC, Rouhani asked why India, a nation with population of 1.3 billion, was not a member of the powerful club.
United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday lavished praise on Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the 'nicest-looking guy' while describing him as a 'father' but also calling him 'a killer' and 'tough as hell', while hinting at an imminent trade deal between the two countries.
The India-Japan civil nuclear deal might not fructify anytime too soon, with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh acknowledging that India was keenly aware of Japanese sensitivities on the matter and "would not like to force the issue".
California representative Lantos was one of the key members of the Congress who were instrumental in getting the Henry J Hyde Act pertaining to the civilian nuclear initiative between India and the United States passed in 2006.
'The real story of 2025 is that India officially stopped being a 'market of the future' and started acting as the world's primary economic engine.'
The president emeritus of Asia Society and former Kennedy administration official Phillips Talbot has said the nuclear agreement would benefit both countries as it would ensure strategic ties between Washington and New Delhi "for 20 or 30 years".
India has approved proposals to procure weapons and military hardware worth Rs 79,000 crore, including Nag missiles, amphibious warfare ships, and electronic intelligence systems, to enhance the military's combat capabilities.
Menon will undertake a two-day visit from April 30 during which he will hold talks with US Under Secretary Nicholas Burns on the 123 agreement amid indications that Washington was 'frustrated' at the speed of the negotiations.
Strongly backing the stalled civilian nuclear deal with India, Republican presidential candidate John McCain has said it would strengthen the US ties with the world's largest democracy and further involve New Delhi in non-proliferation efforts. McCain, 71, who has sealed the Republican nomination for the November Presidential elections, said the US should engage actively with both India and Pakistan to improve the security of nuclear stockpiles and weapons materials.
'Nor would it have serious implications in India's relations with Saudi Arabia that stand on their own and have improved significantly in recent times, including in defence and strategic affairs.'
US President Donald Trump claimed to have resolved the conflict between India and Pakistan, stating that 'seven brand new' planes were shot down during the conflict. He reiterated that he used trade as leverage to achieve this resolution.
The two countries are aiming at sorting out differences particularly on issues like reprocessing right, perpetuity of fuel supplies and continuance of the civilian nuclear cooperation if India were to conduct an atomic test.
India's actions on nuclear deal contingent on US actions
Indian and American experts on Wednesday held detailed discussions on a range of implementation issues, including administrative, liability, technical and licensing matters to advance the operationalisation of Indo-US civil nuclear cooperation that has been in limbo for past 9 years.
Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott on Friday said he will sign an agreement with India to sell uranium for non-weapon use. "Prime Minister Modi and I will today sign a nuclear cooperation agreement that will finally allow Australian uranium to India," he said while addressing a meeting, organised by industry chambers including CII and Ficci.
On the table are additional batches of S-400 surface-to-air missile systems from Russia, which India used with immense success during Operation Sindoor. India could buy at least two squadrons of Su-57 fighter jets plus joint production of S-500 air defence systems.
Leaders of the two countries, however, did discuss on Pakistan's nuclear safety and security which is an ongoing discussion.
The Army Chief said India's political brass has the will to strengthen the country's deterrence capabilities.
'Can a nuclear-armed nation sustain itself indefinitely under overt military rule without catastrophic consequences for itself and the region? History suggests otherwise.'
The landmark India-US civil nuclear deal of 2008, brokered during Manmohan Singh's tenure as Prime Minister, is seen as a crowning achievement in his foreign policy legacy. The agreement ended India's nuclear isolation, fostered a strategic partnership with the US, and opened doors to advanced technologies and defense cooperation. This historic deal also laid the groundwork for India's engagement with the global nuclear community.
Prime Ministers Modi and Abe enjoyed a close and empathetic relationship and this certainly gave a sustained momentum to the India-Japan strategic partnership. It is necessary for India to reach out and engage with his successor as early as possible, advises former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
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