World | India
Democrats' poll win may pose threat to India-US nuclear deal
The Democrats' victory in the US congressional elections has sparked anxieties here about the future of the India-US civil nuclear deal, with diplomats and experts divided over the course of the agreement.
- IANS
- Published: 00:00 November 9, 2006
New Delhi: The Democrats' victory in the US congressional elections has sparked anxieties here about the future of the India-US civil nuclear deal, with diplomats and experts divided over the course of the agreement.
"Democrats might include new conditions which may make it difficult for a lame duck president to push through the agreement," Abid Hussain, a former envoy of India to the US, said.
Hussain stressed that the nuclear deal may get caught in the crossfire of domestic politics and the game of one-upmanship in the run-up to the 2008 presidential elections.
"Moreover, Democrats may not like to give Republicans the credit for pulling off the nuclear deal with India. This is the only feather in the cap of the Bush administration in foreign policy as they have failed elsewhere in Iraq and Iran," Hussain said.
"Furthermore, the Democrats and reluctant Republicans may join together to make the progress of the agreement a little rough and difficult," he added.
The American embassy here is also bracing itself to address Indian anxieties, with the US envoy to India, David C. Mulford, set to make a statement on the issue today.
William Cohen, former US defence secretary who is currently in India, stressed that the deal enjoyed strong bipartisan support in the US.
"There is a lot at stake in it for both India and the US. If the deal does not go through in the lameduck session, it will not go down well in the short-term but it will not affect long-term India-US relations," Cohen said.
"Now, there will be a lot more extra conditions. And if that happens, going by what Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told parliament recently, it may not be acceptable to India," Bharat Karnad, an expert on nuclear issues, said.
"This will also give a handle to non-proliferation advocates in the US, who despite what India says do not make any distinction between North Korea and India," Karnad said.
K. Subrahmanyam, an expert who heads the prime minister's task force on global strategic developments, however, is optimistic about the future of the nuclear agreement.
"The elections will have no impact on the nuclear deal. Let's not forget that Democrats overwhelming voted in favour of the draft Bill on the nuclear deal in the House of Representatives recently. Eighty per cent of these Democrats are back," he said.
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