India vows to avoid arms race as NSG talks resume
India pledged yesterday not to engage in a new arms race as talks continued in Vienna over whether to let the United States sell India nuclear material and technology for civilian use.
It remained unclear whether the US would win its push to get a waiver on a nuclear trade ban.
More than a dozen nations have balked at the deal, pointing out that India has conducted atomic test blasts and has refused to sign the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.
In New Delhi, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said his country remains committed to a voluntary moratorium on nuclear testing. He said India would not touch off a new arms race or share sensitive nuclear technology with others.
"We do not subscribe to any arms race, including a nuclear arms race," Mukherjee said Friday. "We have always tempered the exercise of our strategic autonomy with a sense of global responsibility. We affirm our policy of no-first-use of nuclear weapons."
Acting US Undersecretary of State John Rood, who specializes in arms control issues, told reporters as the talks broke for lunch that Washington remained "confident and optimistic" that it would hammer out a compromise.
Rood hailed Mukherjee's statement as "very significant" and expressed hope that it would lay to rest any lingering concerns about India's nuclear ambitions and intentions.
The talks were convened by the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group, which governs the legal trade in nuclear components and technology. Thursday's session was inconclusive.
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