This Article is From Mar 22, 2010

US-Pak N-deal in the offing? India hopes not

New Delhi: Is the US now open to a nuclear deal with Pakistan similar to the Indo-US deal?

Reports suggest a change of heart on the part of Washington, which had so far kept rebuffing Pakistan's request for a nuclear deal. Noting this, India has asked the United States to consider Pakistan's track record before any such deal.

Anne W. Patterson, US Ambassador to Pakistan, has said in an interview to a US-based Pakistani newspaper: "We are beginning to have a discussion with the Pakistan Government" on the country's desire to tap nuclear energy.

She said these would be "working level talks" on the issue in Washington this month. "Earlier on, non-proliferation concerns were quite severe. I think we are beginning to pass those and this is a scenario that we are going to explore...," Patterson said.

A spokesman of the US embassy in Pakistan, however, told NDTV: "The US has not entered negotiations on a civil nuclear agreement with Pakistan. The United States is committed to helping Pakistan address its real and growing energy needs, and we look forward to cooperating with Pakistan in ways that are compatible with Pakistan's economic, environmental and security needs and with US international commitments and policies."

Reacting to the possibility of a deal between the US and Pakistan, External Affairs Minister SM Krishna said: "America needs to take a holistic view on the US-Pak nuclear deal...The US should consider Pakistan's track record before any deal."

Earlier in the day, government sources said India hoped the international community would strike the right balance between meeting energy needs of any country while taking on board its track record on proliferation of nuclear technology and weapons of mass destruction.

Sources have meanwhile said another stage of the Indo-US civil nuclear deal is through. And the public announcement is expected when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visits Washington next month.

India and US have agreed on reprocessing fuel. India can process spent nuclear fuel for reuse in civil nuclear reactors. Reprocessing will be done under international safeguards at a national facility.
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