US Ambassador to India David Mulford today played spoiler to New Delhi’s delicate dealing on the Iran nuclear issue as he sought to link the fate of the Indo-US nuclear deal to the way India votes at the International Atomic Energy Agency meeting on February 2.In an interview to PTI, Mulford that if India did not vote to send Iran to the UN Security Council, the effect on the deal would be “devastating”, for the US Congress would “simply stop considering the matter” and the “initiative will die”.Later on, in damage-control mode within hours of the interview, Mulford expressed “regret” at his comments and said they were “taken out of context”. He pointed out that he had also said that Iran was a matter where India would vote “on the basis of its own national interest”.The remarks prompted a sharp reaction from India. “The position that India will take on this issue at the IAEA will be based on India’s own independent judgment,” an MEA spokesperson said. “We categorically reject any attempt to link this to the proposed Indo-US agreement on civil nuclear energy cooperation, which stands on its own merits.”But there is more in the interview to cast doubt on the nuclear deal. According to Mulford, the outline of the plan to separate civil and military nuclear reactors given to Washington last December did not meet the “tests” of a credible plan that could win the day in the US Congress despite the bi-partisan support expressed by members like Senator John Kerry.The remarks have been far from helpful for the government, with sources saying they have made matters difficult given the mounting pressure from the Left not to vote in favour of referring the Iran nuclear issue to the UNSC.There is a difference of opinion between the two countries on the Iran issue and this was reflected in the recently concluded meeting between Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran and US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns.The US delegation raised the issue and felt that the matter should be referred to the UNSC even if it has to be put on vote. But India took the view that a consensus-based approach would be more productive. It argued that progress on resolving the crisis became only more difficult after September when the IAEA resolution was put to vote.New Delhi has also advised the EU-3 (Britain, France and Germany), which is negotiating with Iran, to make efforts for a consensus within the IAEA on whatever resolution it adopts on February 2.
