Posted on 07/30/2008 9:17:57 PM PDT by CarrotAndStick
NEW DELHI: Ahead of the IAEA meeting on Friday, Pakistan has demanded nuclear deal similar to the one Washington has made with India.
Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said at a gathering under the aegis of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Middle East Institute: "there should be no preferential, there should be no discrimination. And if they want to give civilian nuclear status to India, we would also expect the same for Pakistan too".
"For us, national security is supreme and the government will do everything in its power to defend it," says Mohammed Sadiq, spokesperson, Pakistan Foreign Office.
The IAEA Board of Governors will meet in Vienna on Friday in a crucial session to consider for approval a key step for operationalisation of the Indo-US nuclear deal.
If the 35-member Board approves the India-specific safeguards agreement by consensus leading to the signing of an unprecedented document, it would pave the way for India's integration into the world of nuclear commerce.
Atomic Energy Commission Chairman Anil Kakodkar is expected to hold talks with all NSG members also during his stay to bring them on board for giving India a "clean and unconditional waiver" ahead of the group's first meeting early next month. India is a member of IAEA but not the NSG.
Kakodkar said he would take part in all discussions including the negotiations that are underway on an Additional Protocol with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Meanwhile, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), US has confronted Pakistan with new evidence about ties between the country's spy service with some militant groups responsible for rising violence in Afghanistan, possibly including suicide bombing at the Indian embassy in Kabul earlier this month.
A top official of CIA secretly travelled to Islamabad this month and confronted Pakistan's senior officials with new information about deepening ties between the ISI and the militants operating in tribal areas, the New York Times said quoting American military and intelligence officials.
CIA's deputy director Stephen R Kappes’ secret visit to Pakistan on July 12, along with Adm Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff, was described by several American military and intelligence officials in interviews to the daily, who made it clear that they welcomed the decision by the CIA to take a harder line toward the ISI's dealings with militant groups.
The meetings took place days after a suicide bomber attacked the Indian embassy in Kabul, killing dozens. Afghanistan's government has publicly accused the ISI of having a hand in the attack, an assertion American officials have not corroborated, the paper said.
The decision to have Kappes deliver the message about the spy service could be a sign of deteriorating relationship between the CIA and the ISI, which has long been marked by mutual suspicion and dependence, the report said.
The CIA has depended heavily on the ISI for information about militants in Pakistan, despite longstanding concerns about divided loyalties within the Pakistani spy service, which had close relations with Taliban in Afghanistan before the September 11 attacks.
Screw em. Let AQ Khan share with them
We wish to share civilian nuclear with India to help ease the drain on Petroleum assets worldwide.
Pakistan is doesnt present the same reduction in petroleum and has bigger risks
Also it is unlikely that Pakistan would alow the same oversight.
India for good or bad is an open democratic society.
Pakistan is a closed nest of vipers
Far enough. Just as soon as you clear out the nest of vipers on your Northwest border.
We also are trying to build up India technologically as a counterbalance to China.
Yessir
“I want what he’s having”
This is now the height of power negotiating tactics with the American State Dept.
The sad thing is that it works.
Perhaps we should come up with an actual menu of services that countries could chose from, and maybe have “specials” and a “soup of the day” kind of thing.
We aim to please here at State. /s.
Excellent development! This is similar to what we are trying to force on Iran. Essentially, by selling civilian use grade “fuel” to them, we will eliminate the need for enrichment programs which can detour into making weapons grade “fuel”. Most people don’t appreciate the difference.
What makes you think that they will shut down their indigenous enrichment efforts??If anything, it would boost their weapons capability. Most IAEA agreements (signed with China/agreed with India) require the countries to separate their facilities. The facilities not under safeguards (usually military and research establishments) can do what they want.
It’s non-sequitur.
Also, additional benefits of us supplying “fuel” and helping advance civilian nuclear use in other countries like India (or Pakistan), which are already “military nuclear powers” in their own right, is that it would:
1. eventually help reduce the use of fossil fuels in their economy for energy needs and thus help reduce the demand and prices for such worldwide
2. make it more obvious to the great unwashed here at home the fallacy of not developing and building nuclear reactors for the same purposes here, while simultaneously creating thousands of “green-collar” jobs (not that it’s a primary goal)
3. put the pressure on not yet military-capable nuclear wannabes to do the same or similar program, this time with the monitoring agreements which are also either outside of or not inclusive only to IAEA. It takes the main arguments away from countries like Iran which insists on its own nuclear program (for obvious reasons) despite offers of helping with monitored civilian program and supplying them with civilian grade “fuel”.
This creates and is served as a “precedent” that helps put us in the driver seat, reducing role of UN and IAEA, while at the same time helping us economically in developing and promoting the civilian use of nuclear power (instead of seeding it to let’s say, France etc.) and helps us (financially as well as in terms of intel, voluntary and other) in monitoring the nuclear developments (potential proliferation, or “improper” use) elsewhere.
It will take a while but this is a good and necessary first step. That some countries (military-capable or not) are already interested in following India on that path is very encouraging.
The US Air Force will even deliver them, free of charge, the the Pakistani 'tribal areas'.
After the first week of free deliveries, we can politely ask the ISI the whereabouts of one Osama Bin Laden. If they happen to have his head in a box, well the 'free delivery' program can cease.
If not, crank up the B-52's again until the desired results are achieved.
L
The Indo-US nuclear deal for what it’s worth will only make sense when the IAEA and the NSG approve it-it is significant because the US (along with China) was the only country opposing the sale of N-tech to India. The US is not bypassing the IAEA or the UN with this deal-it won’t be American inspectors visiting Indian facilities.It hardly puts the US in the drivers seat in any sense given that there is no legal obligation on any government to buy only American technology.The French and Russians are already lining up for the Indian market-there is no headstart for US companies.
About reducing oil prices-again,how soon will that happen??It would take at least 25 years for adequate reactors to be built in such countries to bring prices down.
About similar agreements, well there are only a handful of countries who are outside the IAEA/NPT ambit.Each with it’s own specific issues.
As you said, civilian nuclear programs will go on with or without our participation. We do have the option of not participating and doing nothing there, just as we “successfully” have done almost nothing here.
“We” have the ability to make or break or seriously delay a foreign programme, if its not participating by applying sanctions through the IAEA.That’s what it did with the Indian programme.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.