http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/02/AR2006030200183.html

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-060302bush,1,6527020.story?coll=chi-news-hed

Is this good or bad?

[Edited on March 2, 2006 at 9:36 AM. Reason : washingtonpost l/p ??]

3/2/2006 9:14:40 AM

Pakistan is going to be pissed. But we already have such rapidly developing economic ties with India (both real consumable trade and outsourcing) that this is probably a positive thing in the long run. Oh and look at this,

Quote :

"A poll in the Hindustan Times, an English language daily said that while 54 percent of Indians think, "Close ties with the U.S. are a must for India to become a great power"; 51 percent think that "India cannot trust the U.S. in the long term.""

It looks like the people in India are about as informed as the people in the U.S. That is to say, not at all.

3/2/2006 9:28:30 AM

So 51% = none?

3/2/2006 9:42:58 AM

time to choose friends

i think it's VERY important to obatin and maintain India as a key ally in the decades ahead

3/2/2006 9:55:59 AM

Quote :

"Is this good or bad?"

Depends. Do you speak Mandarin?

3/2/2006 10:13:34 AM

as an indian.. fuck ya.. its in their best interest... as an american... were shooting ourselves in the foot, what the hell do we tell iran now... go ahead we will give you shit for a decade or two, but after that we will back down and accept you. and since you got shit tons of oil, it will only take a few years...

3/2/2006 10:38:55 AM

This does raise a lot of concerns that it underminds our nonproliferation efforts. Afterall, we're telling countries like North Korea to back off on nuclear weapons and chastise Russia for selling reactor technology to Iran, yet here we are selling nuclear technology and support to India, a nation that is not only outside of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty but also a very recent and unwanted addition to the global nuclear weapons club.

The fact that India also resists additional checks because it's military and civilian nuclear programs are "intertwined" only further worsens the situation.

This deal may be good for India and Indo-American ties, but this is just one more step in undermining what little credibility we have left in the global community. By doing this, how can we stop the Chinese or Russians from selling nuclear technology to Iran, North Korea, or any other nation with nuclear weapons ambitions?

Least we can do at this point is sell the same technology to Pakistan less we further destabilize the region. That and give them their F-16s.

3/2/2006 11:16:45 AM

i agree, this sounds like a bad idea all the way around.

3/2/2006 11:19:14 AM

lets see

you've got the world's largest democracy

which is also one of the world's fastest growing economies

with the world's toughest neighborhood, full of theocratic fascists, directly to its west

and the world's largest Communism directly to its east

and all it wants to do is hold its own

with or without the US, these dot-heads are packing heat

3/2/2006 12:54:06 PM

Quote :

"time to choose friends i think it's VERY important to obatin and maintain India as a key ally in the decades ahead "

3/2/2006 1:11:39 PM

Does this mean Bush is going to do lunch there often?

3/2/2006 1:21:35 PM

gotta agree with ssjamind and nastoute...

3/2/2006 1:43:32 PM

Quote :

"Least we can do at this point is sell the same technology to Pakistan less we further destabilize the region. That and give them their F-16s."

wtf are you talking about? Do you know about Pakistan's proliferation record? Where do you think Iran & North Korea got their Nuclear tech from?

3/2/2006 7:30:29 PM

My guess is that we plan on nuking Pakistan anyway, and otherwise we can't imagine where else India could use the technology for ill.

3/2/2006 9:04:54 PM

Surprise! TGD agrees with Bush!

Quote :

"RedGuard: The fact that India also resists additional checks because it's military and civilian nuclear programs are "intertwined" only further worsens the situation."

You realize that they're a DEMOCRACY, right? Democracies can't go wrong. Why do you hate freedom?

Quote :

"RedGuard: By doing this, how can we stop the Chinese or Russians from selling nuclear technology to Iran, North Korea, or any other nation with nuclear weapons ambitions?"

How can we stop them from selling the technology to any of those nations regardless?

Plainly stated, this is an insurance policy against China disguised as hospitality to India against the backdrop of the unstable region to its west.

3/2/2006 9:15:22 PM

Quote :

" wtf are you talking about? Do you know about Pakistan's proliferation record? Where do you think Iran & North Korea got their Nuclear tech from? "

I don't believe in giving nuclear technology to the Pakistanis either, but if we're going to do it with the Indians, we might as well with the Pakistanis to pacify them. Otherwise, we're just further destabilizing the balance of power by indirectly enhancing India's nuclear arsenal. That, and only further undermining the credibility of the current Pakistani government.

Quote :

"How can we stop them from selling the technology to any of those nations regardless?"

We can't, but that doesn't mean we should participate. Instead, we need to preserve the moral high ground. Mind you, we don't have much left, but that's no reason to erode the last bit of ground we have. Prior to this deal, we have been able to stall Russian and Chinese attempts to sell nuclear technology to nations like Iran, but after this deal, there's no reason for them to listen to us anymore. Especially since the way India's civilian and military nuclear programs are linked, we can't even make the case that we're only supporting civilian development.

Quote :

"Plainly stated, this is an insurance policy against China disguised as hospitality to India against the backdrop of the unstable region to its west."

I fully realise this, but there's a difference between building up the Indian economy and military versus accelerating their nuclear technology.

3/3/2006 11:43:17 AM

I wasn't saying that we should participate because the Chinese & Russians are doing similar things. I was simply pointing out that the two countries were going to continue doing what they wanted regardless of whether or not we decided to deal India into the game.

IOW - I fundamentally agree with you, but because of the principle of the prisoner's (nuclear arms) dilemma. That may be the moral high ground you're referring to. I'm not sure.

[Edited on March 3, 2006 at 1:43 PM. Reason : ...]

3/3/2006 1:41:54 PM

i've been thinking for a couple of days

India is like a rook

3/9/2006 1:00:30 AM

Lot of people seem to be talking without knowing what the deal is about....Let me put it in simple words,


1. It is about providing fuel and civilian nuclear technology for our energy needs. The fuel provided will not be used for weapon purposes. The fuel that India already has is enough to make weapons. India does not need additional fuel to make weapons anymore. India does not need any weapon related technology either. India has its own weapons technology and also has active thermal and fast breeder reactor programs.

2. India's nuclear reactors will be divided into military and civilian reactors. The civilian reactors will be subjected to international safeguards. There will be no access to military reactors.

This deal has nothing to do with China and Pakistan (They should not even be mentioned here)

3/14/2006 10:59:14 AM

^ makes sense from the demand-side

...lower the oil dependancy of one of the fastest growing economies

3/14/2006 12:43:20 PM