INDIA AND the US confirmed three broad agreements in the fields of defence, civil nuclear commerce and space co-operation in New Delhi yesterday at the end of secretary of state Hillary Clinton’s five-day trip to bolster a new, bilateral strategic partnership.
All the agreements have multi-billion dollar business potential for America’s recession-hit companies and include safeguards for the sale of advanced US weaponry to India.
The agreements will also facilitate hitherto proscribed collaboration in space, especially regarding satellite launching.
India also approved two sites – in western Gujarat state and in Andhra Pradesh in the south – to construct two US atomic reactors for over $10 billion (€7 billion), the first payoff following the civilian nuclear deal that New Delhi sealed last year with the Bush administration.
Officials in Delhi said this would ensure lucrative contracts for US firms like General Electric and Westinghouse Electric, a subsidiary of Japan’s Toshiba Corporation.
An End Use Monitoring Agreement or EUMA provides guarantees for the sale of sophisticated US material by ensuring that sensitive military technology does not leak to others.
This was the pact Washington was most anxious to clinch with Delhi.
Delhi has earmarked $30 billion to modernise its defence forces by 2012. This amount is expected to rise to $30 billion by 2022.
Signing the EUMA would help US defence contractors competing to sell India over €14 billion of military hardware like 126 combat aircraft and 238 attack, heavy lift and utility helicopters over the next few years.
US defence companies are also lining up to provide India’s special forces with a range of hi-tech equipment such as missiles, “smart” ordnance and radar and battle management systems.
At a joint press conference with her Indian counterpart S M Krishna, Mrs Clinton said the two countries were seeking co-operation in a multitude of areas including agriculture, trade, education, health and homeland security.
“We will work not only to maintain our good relationship, but to broaden and deepen it. To that end our governments have agreed on a strategic dialogue which minister Krishna and I will co-chair,” said Mrs Clinton.
The issue of climate change proved sensitive, especially over the burden that should be borne by developed and developing countries like India in reducing carbon emissions.
In a meeting with Mrs Clinton on Sunday, environment minister Jairam Ramesh criticised the pressure being placed on emerging economies to accept legally binding reduction targets and insisted that India was “simply in no position” to hold its growth hostage to such proposals.
India and China have refused to commit to emission cuts until developed nations, particularly the US, agree to meet targets of their own.
“We believe we can work through our differences,” said an optimistic Mrs Clinton.