US Inc sees a bounty in nuke deal | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

US Inc sees a bounty in nuke deal

None | ByCarol Giacomo (Reuters), Washington
Jan 20, 2006 05:10 PM IST

A multimillion-dollar campaign is being mounted to sell to Congress landmark nuclear deal America signed with India.

US companies are mounting a multimillion-dollar campaign to sell to Congress a landmark civilian nuclear deal with India.

HT Image
HT Image

The deal promises a "bounty of opportunity" for US business and strategic interests, an organiser said.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

The lobbying drive is the most expensive ever mounted by business, said Ron Somers, president of the US-India Business Council of the US Chamber of Commerce. He did not specify the campaign's budget.

He said retired Army Lt Gen Daniel Christman, a former superintendent of the US Military Academy at West Point now working for the US Chamber of Commerce, will coordinate a broad effort as the coalition for partnership with India that groups businesses, think tanks and academics supporting the deal.

This will complement the US-India Business Council, which has engaged the politically well-connected Patton Boggs law firm to lobby lawmakers, Somers informed in an interview.

The high-powered campaign reflects both the importance of the nuclear agreement and the high hurdles it faces in Congress, Somers said.

Some members of Congress and experts worry the deal clinched in July undermines US efforts to stop the spread of nuclear arms.

Somers said the agreement could open the door for US companies to billions of dollars in non-nuclear as well as civilian nuclear-related contracts.

"It's going to unleash a bounty of opportunity that is even beyond commercial measure," including strengthening non-proliferation goals, he said.

For 30 years, the United States led the effort to deny India nuclear technology because it tested and developed nuclear weapons in contravention of international norms. Both India and its neighbour and nuclear-armed rival Pakistan have refused to sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Evolving US ally

But US President George W Bush now views India, a rising democratic and economic power on China's border, as an evolving US ally and the new nuclear deal -- allowing India to purchase nuclear reactors and fuel -- is central to that vision.

Somers spoke as Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns was visiting New Delhi for talks that were expected to show progress on the nuclear deal in advance of Bush's visit to India in late February or early March.

Burns' focus was a plan to put India's civilian nuclear power plants under international monitoring, while weapons-related facilities would remain off-limits.

This separation plan -- the heart of the nuclear deal -- aims to ensure US nuclear technology is never used for military purposes and in theory would make the civilian facilities less susceptible to proliferation.

"We believe the Congress needs to hear that industry is interested in nuclear initiative ... We have been waiting for the administration to provide the signal that the separation agreement is going on well and that it would be behind us," Somers said.

India, for its part, has retained the Barbour Griffiths Rogers lobbying firm of former US ambassador to New Delhi, Robert Blackwill, to push the deal. His former aide, Ashley Tellis, has taken a leave from a Washington think tank to work on the deal at the State Department. Both men are leading advocates of closer US ties with India.

Unveiling Elections 2024: The Big Picture', a fresh segment in HT's talk show 'The Interview with Kumkum Chadha', where leaders across the political spectrum discuss the upcoming general elections. Watch now!

Get Current Updates on India News, Election 2024, Arvind Kejriwal News Live, Bihar Board 10th Result 2024 Live along with Latest News and Top Headlines from India and around the world.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On