ASSEMBLY POLL '98
COMMENTARY
SPECIALS
INTERVIEWS
CAPITAL BUZZ
REDIFF POLL
DEAR REDIFF
THE STATES
YEH HAI INDIA!
ELECTIONS '98
ARCHIVES

India refused to stay fissile material production, reveals Vajpayee

India has rejected a proposal to declare a moratorium on fissile material production, saying, ''It is not possible to take this step at this stage'', Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee informed Parliament today.

''We will, of course, pay serious attention to any negotiated multilateral initiative in the course of the Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty negotiation,'' he said in a statement on the progress of bilateral talks with the United States.

He further reiterated that India is prepared to bring the discussion on the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty with its interlocutors to a successful conclusion so that its entry into force is not delayed beyond September 1999.

He further stated that his government would not succumb to any pressure on restraining the development of research and development capabilities.

Such activity is an integral part of any country's defence preparedness and essential for coping with new threat perceptions that may emerge in future, he said.

The government remains opposed to any suggestion that seeks to place India at a technological disadvantage.

On the CTBT issue, he said India remains committed to converting its voluntary moratorium into a de jure obligation.

He said, ''We will continue to take the initiative in the international forums towards fulfilling the objective of the complete elimination of the nuclear weapons.''

This government remains opposed to any suggestion that seeks to place India at a technological disadvantage through intrusive or sovereignty violative measures, he said.

The prime minister said since the May 11 and 13 tests, the government has, from time to time, "taken the House into confidence and sought the views of the honouorable members". This was done through statements and discussions in the House on May 27-29, June 8 and on August 3-4. "Nevertheless, I wish to re-emphasise some salient points of our policy," he said.

''I take this opportunity to reiterate that India's commitment to global nuclear disarmament remains undiluted. As honourable members are no doubt aware, India has consistently maintained that a nuclear -weapon-free-world would enhance not only our security but the security of all nations. That is why numerous initiatives in this direction were taken during the last fifty years, such steps as would encourage decisive and irreversible measures for the attainment of this objective. Regrettably, the international community, particularly countries that have based their security on nuclear weapons or a nuclear umbrella, have been reluctant to embrace this objective.

"Keeping open our nuclear option, therefore, became a national security imperative three decades ago, an imperative equally valid for India in the post-Cold War period. The option that was exercised in May '98 was thus a continuation of a decision taken near 25 years earlier, during which period India had demonstrated an exemplary nuclear restraint, given the exceptional security related complexities of our region. I wish to place on record that successive governments continued to safeguard this option, demonstrate our capability and take such steps as were necessary to ensure the viability of the option through weaponisation,'' he said.

The PM said just as our conventional defence capability has been deployed in order to safeguard the territorial integrity and sovereignty of India against any use or threat of use of force, the adoption of our nuclear deterrent posture has also followed the same logic. "We have announced our intention to maintain a minimum nuclear deterrent, but one that is credible. Mindful of our global and enhanced responsibility to address concerns of the international community, and in order to re-assure all countries about the defensive nature of our nuclear capability, we have engaged in bilateral discussions with key interlocutors, in international forums, like the United Nations. India is the only country possessing nuclear weapons to raise a call for negotiating a gradual and progressive elimination of all nuclear weapons, within a time-bound framework."

The prime minister said, "We also have an established tradition of consultation with friendly countries on all important international issues. Successive governments have pursued an open, positive and constructive approach in our foreign relations. This is in keeping with our national ethos. It is within this framework that India had been engaged, even before May 1998, in a wide-ranging and broad-based dialogue with the United States. This included discussions on disarmament and non-proliferation and on large strategic issues."

Senior Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee said in the Rajya Sabha today that nuclear weapons are weapons of mass destruction and not a requirement in war.

Participating in the discussion on the prime minister's statement on ''bilateral talks with the United States,'' he said the Non-Proliferation Treaty was highly discriminatory and the CTBT had failed to come up to India's expectations. Though the government was going ahead with negotiations with key negotiators, no conclusion has been reached so far, he said.

He wanted to know what course of action the government would follow if the negotiations failed.

He requested Chairman Krishan Kant to ask the government to clarify its stand on the scientific advantage of the explosion.

While signing the CTBT, every care should be taken to ensure that the country's research and development activities in this direction were not hampered.

He said the prime minister should furnish more details on the nature of voluntary suspension of nuclear tests.

Arun Shourie (BJP) said the CTBT could not be implemented until all 44 nuclear research capable nations signed it, ratified it and duly submitted the documents with the secretary general of the United Nations. ''Hence the fear of India being singled out if we do not sign it does not arise,'' he added.

He said the fear of possible restrictions on country's research and development activities was totally unfounded as many nations in the past have carried out tests even after signing the treaty.

UNI

Tell us what you think of this report