Atal rides mushroom cloud in great style

In a significant proposal, the Prime Minister announced that India is willing to move towards a quot;de-jure formalisationquot; of its earlier announcement to observe a voluntary moratorium on conducting underground nuclear test explosions, in effect sign up the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty CTBT.

India8217;s formalisation of its moratorium would meet the basic obligation of the CTBT, and would convey to the international community thequot;seriousness of India8217;s intent for a meaningful engagementquot;, the Prime Minister said expanding on last week8217;s moratorium offer by India.

Significantly, the Prime Minister8217;s statement makes no reference to China or to Pakistan, though the Baratiya Jananta Party government had chosen to use the threat perception from China to justify its decision to conduct the nuclear tests.

The proposals put forward by the Prime Minister in his suo motu statement to the House were further elaborated by a paper entitled quot;Evolution of India8217;s Nuclear Policyquot; tabled simultaneously in the House.

Taken together, the Prime Minister8217;s statement and the nuclear policy paper give a fairly expansive elucidation of the BJP government8217;s formulation of its future agenda with regard to nuclear tests, relations with Pakistan and arms control negotiations in the international arena.

Indicating a new accommodative position on international arms control talks, the government also proposed India8217;s readiness to participate in the FissileMaterial Cut-Off Treaty FMCT negotiations in Geneva. The approach would be to ensure that the evolving FMCT would be universal and non-discriminatory and backed by an effective verification mechanism.

The Prime Minister recalled that New Delhi had in 1994 proposed that India and Pakistan jointly undertake not to be the first to use their nuclear capability against each other.

Once again today, India was ready to discuss a quot;no first usequot; agreement with Islamabad as also with other countries.

In yet another categorical assurance, intended to set at rest the anxiety in the international community following India8217;s tests, the government stated that India would not indulge in an arms race.

quot;India shall also not subscribe or reinvent the doctrines of the Cold Warquot;, Vajpayee stated.

The Prime Minister also said that India would remain committed to the basic tenets of its foreign policy 8212; a conviction that global elimination of nuclear weapons would enhance its security as well as that of the rest of theworld.

quot;It India will continue to urge countries, particularly other nuclear weapon states to adopt measures that would contribute meaningfullyquot; to the objective of the total elimination of nuclear weapons.

The country8217;s new-found nuclear status would only buttress its responsibilities towards maintaining effective export controls on nuclear materials and related technologies, even though India was not a party to the NPT nor a member of the Nuclear Suppliers8217; Group.

In an aside, the government noted that India8217;s conduct in this regard was better than some countries who were a party to the NPT.

Referring to the backdrop of the Pokharan tests, the government maintained that it had to ensure that the country8217;s nuclear option was not eroded by a voluntary self-imposed restraint.

quot;The only touchstone that guided it was national security,quot; the policy paper noted.

Citing the numerous proposals India had made towards the phased elimination of nuclear weapons, the Prime Minister observed that theseproposals did not receive a positive response from other nuclear weapons states. quot;Had their response been positive, India need not have gone for the current tests,quot; he said.