India's NSG hopes alive; MEA says talks with China to continue

The Nuclear Suppliers Group, whose membership India failed to get two days back, is likely to meet again before the end of the year to specially discuss the process for allowing non-NPT (Non-Proliferation Treaty) signatories into the 48-nation grouping, thus providing another chance to India to press its claims.

In the face of strong opposition from China and a few other countries, India’s application for membership did not go through at the NSG plenary which concluded in Seoul on Friday.

India is not a signatory to the NPT and that was the ground used to thwart India’s bid.

However, diplomatic sources said today that at the suggestion of Mexico, it has now been decided that another meeting of NSG should be held before the end of the year to consider the criteria for allowing non-NPT signatories like India into the group.

Normally, the next meeting of NSG would have been held sometime next year.

Sources said that Mexico’s suggestion was also opposed by China but it found support from a large number of countries including the United States.

A panel for informal consultations on India's membership has also been set up by the NSG and it will be headed by Argentine Ambassador Rafael Grossi.

Grossi’s appointment came even as a top US official said that the NSG session in Seoul had ended with a ‘path forward’ for India’s acceptance as a member.

“We are confident that we have got a path forward by the end of this year. It needs some work. But we are confident that India would be a full member of the (NSG) regime by the end of the year,” the Obama administration official said in Washington.

China was unrelenting in thwarting India’s NSG bid despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging Chinese President Xi Jinping during a meeting in Tashkent on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit to support India’s case on its merits.

An upset India later accused ‘one country’, a clear reference to China, of persistently creating procedural hurdles during the discussions on its application.

Meanwhile, in an obvious reference to China, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Sunday that there was only one country which persistently raised procedural hurdles as a result of which no result could be arrived over the issue on India’s NSG membership, adding that India will continue discussions with China on the issue.

“There are some processes which take longer, Id evaluate the NSG membership process in that category,” MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.

“India will continue discussions with China on the NSG issue. There is a possibility of India’s inclusion,” he said.

“Some countries did raise procedure-related issues but not a single country apart from that one country opposed India’s membership of NSG,” the MEA spokesperson said.

Asserting that India has already implemented all NPT provisions, Swarup said, “Our position on the NPT is very well known. As far as the NSG is concerned, it said the implementation of NPT is important to the extent that goal post remains implementation of the NPT, we believe we have met the criteria and have all credentials to be an NSG member.”

Claiming that India’s case on NSG membership can’t be equated with that of Pakistan, he said, “Our credentials on non-proliferation are very well known, our track record speaks for itself. As far as other countries are concerned, their track record speaks for themselves. I don’t think anyone in global community can ever equate India with Pakistan on Nuclear non-proliferation issue.”

Swarup said that not getting NSG membership in Seoul was not a failure but certainly ‘we did not get the expected results’.

“But these are continuing processes and we will continue to work very actively on this. Today, the Indian diplomacy doesn’t have fear of failure. If we don’t get desired results it only means that we redouble our efforts,” he said.

With inputs from ANI.