What happens to nuclear transfers from US to India if India conducts a nuclear test? Under NPT, and US laws, India is a non-nuclear weapon state. According to Section 129 (a)(1)(A) of the Atomic Energy Act (AEA): “No nuclear materials and equipment or sensitive nuclear technology shall be exported to any non-nuclear-weapon state that is found by the President to have, at any time after the effective date of this section detonated a nuclear explosive device...”

But such a termination is not automatic. Such termination will not take place, according to Section 129(a) of the AEA, “if the President determines that cessation of such exports would be seriously prejudicial to the achievement of United States non-proliferation objectives or otherwise jeopardize the common defense and security”.

Article 14(2) of the India-UA agreement explicitly acknowledges this prerogative of the President to waive termination by stating, “The parties agree to consider carefully the circumstances which may lead to termination or cessation of cooperation. They further agree to take into account whether the circumstances that may lead to termination or cessation resulted from a party’s serious concern about a changed security environment or as a response to similar actions by other States which could impact national security.”

Therefore, a test by India in future would not automatically result in any termination of the 123 agreement.

As for that bogeyman of the Indian opponents of the deal, the Hyde Act, that Act in discussing termination of nuclear transfers to India (Article 4(d)(3)) has no reference to termination on account of testing!

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