Thaindian News

New Delhi, March 9 (IANS) Ahead of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Washington next month, India and the US have held another round of talks to resolve their differences over an accord on reprocessing US-origin spent fuel, one of the key steps towards implementing the landmark nuclear deal.
“India is quite optimistic of clinching the pact soon. We still have time till July to do so. It could happen sooner than that,” a government source said here Tuesday about the talks held here last week.

The negotiations were held between a team of India’s Department of Atomic Energy officials led by R.B. Grover and the US delegation led by Richard Stratford, the non-proliferation and disarmament expert in the State Department.

The differences between the two sides over the text of the draft accord, which cropped up in the last meeting in Washington, have been resolved, the sources added. The text is final and will now be vetted by the political leadership of the two countries, the sources added.

The two sides are keen that the processes relating to the reprocessing pact are completed by the time when Manmohan Singh lands in Washington to attend the 44-nation Nuclear Security Summit in April.

The Indian government is pushing hard for a quick passage of the Civil Nuclear Liabilities Bill, that limits damages to be paid by foreign nuclear companies in case of nuclear accidents, in this session of parliament.

After prolonged negotiations over the last seven months, the US side has accepted India’s proposal for multiple dedicated national facilities for reprocessing spent fuel, the sources said.

The two sides have also been able to find a way out to accommodate each other’s concerns over India’s right to reprocess in case it conducts a nuclear test. India has also agreed to security levels at reprocessing facilities, followed by nuclear powers like the US.

Indian officials have made it clear to their American interlocutors that India was not ready to move away from what is outlined in the 123 civil nuclear cooperation agreement.

During Manmohan Singh’s last visit to Washington in November, the two sides were close to clinch the reprocessing pact, but it could not happen due to differences over the language of the draft to accommodate each other’s concerns.

The two sides held their first round of negotiations in July. Under the 123 agreement, they are required to conclude the agreement within a year of beginning the negotiations.