India, US close to implementation of civil nuclear deal

New Delhi, March 20 (IANS) India and the US are on way to implementation of their long-pending civilian nuclear deal with senior nuclear department officials of both sides exchanging the signed text of the "administrative arrangements" that would guide the deal.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin, in response to a question, said that during US President Barack Obama's India visit in January, both sides finalized the "administrative arrangements" which was announced on January 25.

"I can confirm to you that after the necessary internal procedures, the signed texts are currently being exchanged, between the department of atomic energy (DAE) of India and the US department of energy."

He also said that the Indo-US nuclear contact group, which had sorted out the niggling issues holding back the civil nuclear deal, had met on Thursday and "acknowledged that all policy hurdles no longer exist".

Both sides are "now focused on bettering commercial prospects of the deal," he said, denying reports that there was delay in firming up the administrative arrangements.

Akbaruddin said that around 100 officials from different countries with whom India is doing nuclear commerce are attending a workshop on India Nuclear Insurance Policy.

The officials are from Japan, including from Toshiba, and from Westinghouse, which is to set up the US built reactors in India.

The spokesperson said that "all the biggest names in the nuclear field", including from Russia's Rosatom are attending the workshop. "All those doing business in India are here, trying to work out and understand issues," he said.

The spokesperson said that "there is no truth in the assertion" that Japan was opposing the implementation of the Indo-US nuclear deal over the issue of fuel tracking or that India has delayed the administrative arrangements of the India-US civil nuclear deal.

He said that Japanese companies are present at the workshop here for discussions with Indian officials "in accordance with the directive" that the leaders gave during the India-Japan summit talks in Tokyo in September 2014.

"Any purported link between India's administrative arrangement with the US and India's negotiation with Japan is pure speculation."

The spokesperson also said that while India is keen on an early civil nuclear agreement with Japan, "the absence of an agreement with Japan is currently not an obstacle to ongoing cooperation with our other partners".