A Welcome End to India’s Pariah Status

US President Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced an agreement that would allow shipment of nuclear components to India for peaceful energy development. India agreed to “irreversibly” turn nearly two-thirds of its 22 nuclear reactors into civilian facilities that will be open for inspection. The agreement is not final, and the US Congress could block the deal, taking advantage of President Bush’s sinking popularity. Critics suggest that the agreement blows a hole in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and could encourage rogue nations like Iran and North Korea to continue development of nuclear weapons. But the NPT already has some flaws. The treaty allowed five countries with nuclear weapons – US, France, Great Britain, Russia and China – to keep those weapons, while offering energy assistance to other nations that promised not to develop weapons. Yet three nations, led by India, developed nuclear weapons anyway and never signed the treaty. The new agreement recognizes that some nations will develop nuclear technology on their own and differentiates India from Iran, as a responsible rising democracy that has a record of keeping commitments and protecting its technology. – YaleGlobal