Washington: Even though India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Obama Administration on Thursday said New Delhi has a key role to play in
strengthening of global nuclear non-proliferation regime.
"I think India, will play an important role both in
the national security summit next week as well as the NPT
review conference in May," Assistant Secretary of State for
Public Affairs P J Crowley told reporters.
"We think, as the Nuclear Posture Review reflected on
its release, yesterday, we are less concerned about the
exchange of nuclear weapons among states; we`re more concerned
about how we keep, you know, nuclear technology and know-how
out of the hands of outlier states and rogue elements,"
Crowley said.
"India will have an important role to play both in
terms of reinforcing and strengthening the Non-Proliferation
Treaty, but also demonstrating, as it is itself, how it can
both, protect, nuclear technology but while also, allowing the
growth of civilian nuclear capacity," Crowley said in response
to a question.
Earlier in the day, Special US Advisor Non
Proliferation and Arms Control Robert J Einhorn said US and
India have increasingly become partners in this area of
dealing with the global proliferation threat with the threat
of nuclear terrorism.
"We talk about these issues on a bilateral and on a
multilateral basis with India quite frequently," he told
reporters at the Washington Foreign Press Center.
Einhorn said the Obama Administration "appreciates and
understands" India`s attitude toward NPT.
"It`s a long-standing attitude; it`s a position of
principle. What`s especially important to us is that India
behave in a responsible manner. And it has behaved in a
responsible manner," he said.
The State Department official said the US would not
push India to sign Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) until
it is ratified by the United States Senate.
"Once we have ratified, we`ll be in discussions with
India about how to bring this important treaty into force.
"In terms of the Comprehensive Test-Ban Treaty, the
Obama Administration will press hard for Senate ratification
of the treaty, and then we will work with other countries to
bring it into force. Bringing it into force means that the
United States and India and Pakistan and China and a number of
other countries must ratify. And we will be in discussions
with India (once it is ratified by the Senate)," Einhorn said.
PTI
