IAEA terms under US pact won’t tie India’s hands

IAEA terms under US pact won’t tie India’s hands

Additional protocol gives operational flexibility to N-weapon states

C. RAJA MOHAN

NEW DELHI, JULY 27: Contrary to assertions here that the separation of India’s civilian and military nuclear programmes and placing the former under international safeguards will undermine India’s nuclear deterrent, a reading of similar agreements by other nuclear weapon states suggests the government will retain full operational flexibility under any such arrangement.

Besides choosing which facilities of the nuclear programme it wants to designate as civilian and place under international safeguards, India will have the option of removing facilities from the list it would eventually submit to the International Atomic Energy Agency.