India rejects clause on nuke tests in civilian pact with Japan+

TOKYO, Oct. 12 Kyodo -
India has rejected a proposal by Japan to include in a bilateral civilian
nuclear cooperation pact a clause that Tokyo would halt nuclear energy
cooperation if New Delhi conducts a nuclear test, Japanese Foreign Minister
Seiji Maehara said Tuesday.
''I hear India has not been convinced'' by Japan's proposal, Maehara said at a
press conference.
The two countries held the second round of working-level talks last week on
concluding a bilateral civilian nuclear energy treaty, which would enable
Japanese firms to export nuclear power generation technology and related
equipment to India.
Maehara said he has instructed Japanese officials to accelerate negotiations
for the nuclear pact with India based on Tokyo's position of halting its
cooperation under the treaty in the event New Delhi conducts a nuclear test.
Such a stance was originally proposed by Maehara's predecessor Katsuya Okada.
The Japanese government's position is apparently aimed at assuaging those who
criticized starting the talks in late June despite India developing nuclear
weapons without signing the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
India is currently imposing a moratorium on nuclear tests.
The bilateral talks on the civilian nuclear pact have triggered an outcry from
survivors of the 1945 U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World
War II who fear such a move would hamper global efforts to realize a world
without nuclear weapons.
==Kyodo
2010-10-13 00:45:56