India becomes nuclear market

India and France on Tuesday sealed a landmark agreement on civil nuclear cooperation that covers supply of reactors and atomic fuel. The step brings India back into the nuclear mainstream after 34 years of isolation.

The agreement will form the basis of wide-ranging bilateral cooperation from basic and applied research to full civil nuclear cooperation, including reactors, nuclear fuel supply, nuclear safety, radiation and environment protection and nuclear fuel cycle management. The agreement was initialed following bilateral talks between the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, and the French President, Mr Nicolas Sarkozy. The pact comes nearly three weeks after India won a crucial NSG waiver.

Squaring his shoulders, Dr Singh said: “We have added a new dimension to our strategic partnership by signing an inter-governmental agreement on civil nuclear cooperation.” France is the first country to sign a nuclear agreement after the NSG waiver. “I conveyed to President Sarkozy our gratitude for France’s consistent support to our civil nuclear initiative,” Dr Singh said.

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