Brajesh Mishra gives thumbs up to Nuke deal

Brajesh Mishra, National Security Advisor during the NDA regime, congratulated the Govt on safeguards agreement with IAEA.

Hailing the Indo-US nuclear deal, Brajesh Mishra, National Security Advisor during the NDA regime, congratulated the Government on safeguards agreement with IAEA and cautioned against re-negotiating the deal.

Mishra, who held the dual positions of NSA and Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, said the draft safeguards agreement is “very satisfactory” and discounted the concerns raised by some quarters over India’s military nuclear programme.

“It is as good as we could have got,” he told a TV channel when asked about the safeguards agreement which was unveiled by the government on Thursday.

Mishra said the specifics of the agreement with IAEA are the same as the 123 agreement with the United States. “If you are satisfied with it (123 agreement), then this is also good”.

The government had done a good job on the agreement and “they have my congratulations”, he said.

On concerns raised over India’s independent defence nuclear programme, he said the criticism was unfounded as the safeguards agreement mentions New Delhi’s military nuclear programme. “So they are making an exception for India”.

He cautioned against re-negotiating the deal with the US, a demand pressed by the BJP, saying it could mean giving up something.

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“Re-negotiation is between two parties, it is not a one-way street. We might also have to give up something. It depends on the political circumstances then,” Mishra said.

Asked if this is the best possible deal for India, the former NSA said, “Yes of course”.

Mishra said the United States was saying that the safeguards have to be in perpetuity while India was arguing that this cannot happen if the supply is not in perpetuity.

“In this deal, India has protected itself,” he said, adding the corrective measures could come into play if fuel supply to India is stopped.

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“Normally in an agreement with the IAEA you do not talk about the fuel supply. But India has been insisting on it,” he added.

Mishra said while he would not like to comment on the assurances given by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Parliament, he felt the 123 deal with US and IAEA safeguards agreement followed each other and there was nothing to be critical about them.

The former NSA, however, criticised the government for keeping the agreement with the “IAEA under wraps till the end”.

“Without talking of the politics on the issue, I am amazed that the Government had to keep this agreement under wraps until yesterday,” he said, adding if there was no need to hide the 123 agreement, then why the safeguards one. There was no need to be secretive about it. It gives a wrong perception,” he said.

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On whether the Government approached the IAEA without taking the country into confidence, Mishra said, there was no need for the confusion and the “nit-picking”.