Disarm Pakistan first

Columnist M.V. Kamath writes on the nuclear deal debate. “The United States is doing everything in its power to get India to sign both the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and the Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty (FMCT) and thus make it entirely subservient to Washington.” He says the US is presently using Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel to put pressure on India. Merkel reportedly told India’s special envoy Shyam Saran, who recently visited Germany, that Delhi must not only sign the CTBT, but also ratify the FMCT, if it wants her support of the proposed 123 Agreement. “As it is, the 123 Agreement is on hold and is unlikely to be operationalised... India is not against non-proliferation. All that it rightly cares for is its own security. If the US and the European Union can promise India that they will completely disarm Pakistan’s nuclear capabilities, then Delhi could have no compunction in signing a non-proliferation treaty. Washington must understand this clearly. Instead of putting shackles on the Pakistani armed forces, the United States is giving all possible military assistance to them without caring a hoot for India’s sensibilities,” he writes.