India dismisses Pak talk of arms race due to N-deal

New Delhi/London: India on Thursday dismissed a warning by Pakistan that the Indo-US nuke deal will accelerate an atomic arms race in the sub-continent declaring there was no scope for any "nuclear weaponisation."

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee also made it clear that the deal was purely a civilian issue with no military consequences.

"The deal is a civil nuclear cooperation agreement with the international community. Where is the scope for arms race," Mukherjee told a TV channel.

Special: Indo-US nuclear deal | Full coverage | Also read: Pak warns of new nuclear arms race with India

Mukherjee's remarks came in the backdrop of a warning by Pakistan that the India-specific safeguards agreement being finalised with the IAEA would hurt non-proliferation efforts and "threatens to increase the chances of a nuclear arms race in the sub-continent."

The warning came in a letter dated July 18 and addressed to members of the IAEA Board and a 45-nation consortium known as the Nuclear Suppliers Group(NSG). The letter has been sent in all to 60 countries.

The safeguards pact will come up before the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA) for consideration and approval on August 1.

A week after the letter questioning the deal caused some unease in India and the US, Pakistan on Thursday said it does not want to "obstruct" the deal but it should also be considered for such an accord without any "discrimination."

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"We don't want to be obstructive," Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said in London when asked how he perceived the Indo-US nuke deal at the International Institute for Strategic Studies here after delivering a lecture at the think tank.

US Ambassador David C Mulford viewed with "concern" Pakistan's position at the IAEA on India-specific safeguards agreement and said Washington was talking to it and hoped Islamabad will "see things in right light" and "be cooperative".

Mukherjee said India’s commitment in respect of not indulging in nuclear proliferation is well known among the global community.

"The nuclear deal is for civil nuclear cooperation with the international community. It is not for nuclear weaponisation," he said.

In London, Qureshi said, "there should not be any discrimination and Pakistan should also be considered for such a deal(like Indo-US nuke deal)."

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"We feel that an agreement should be such that it should not be discriminatory in nature. Pakistan has energy requirements and Pakistan should have the same," he said.

A note circulated among the key members of the IAEA Board of Governors has reportedly questioned the urgency to waive the 45-day approval process and the 30-day notice for a meeting in the UN atomic watchdog in the case of India.

Asked about difficulties that could be foreseen at the IAEA, particularly considering Pakistan's reservations, US Ambassador David C Mulford hoped the country will be "cooperative" to the nuclear initiative for India.

"Pakistan is the particular issue to be addressed. We will do that. We hope they will see the right light and be cooperative," the Ambassador said.

During the briefing of IAEA Board of Governors by Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon on July 18, Pakistan is said to have raised questions over various aspects of the India-IAEA agreement.

Menon is understood to have sought to answer these questions but Pakistan is reported to have wondered why the safeguards text was being rushed through.