‘Seize the moment’

India, like us, faces national elections soon — no later than May 2009. Now that the hard work of negotiating has been done, both bilaterally and internationally, it is essential to seize the moment and pass the implementing legislation. A failure by Congress to take the final action implementing this agreement would be a severe setback to the strategic gains both the US and India hope to gain from their partnership. It would also put US industry at a deep disadvantage, now that other states can freely participate in civil nuclear cooperation with India.

Common strategic interests: In proposing the agreement, the Bush administration stressed three factors: the geo-strategic significance of our emerging relationship with India; India’s excellent record in safeguarding nuclear technology; and India’s massive future energy needs. All three arguments are as powerful as ever. With its growing economy and powerful military position, India has become a global partner for the United States and is shaping the future of Asia. There is a striking convergence of interests between India and the US on issues vital to us. India has taken a strong stand against international terrorism. It is one of the largest economic contributors to reconstruction in Afghanistan. It is the primary resident naval force in the Indian Ocean, and works with us to maintain the security of the sea-lanes through which most of the worlds oil trade travels. These common interests provide a solid foundation for a long-term partnership based on both democratic values and geopolitical interests. A strong relationship with India is critical to US security and economic interests in Asia.

India’s nonproliferation record: When the Congress passed the Hyde Act, it recognized India’s steadfast refusal to transfer nuclear technology to others. These unique circumstances make this change in US nonproliferation policy possible. We are now poised to reap the nonproliferation benefits of ending India’s nuclear isolation. Eligibility for civilian nuclear cooperation is an essential first step toward bringing India fully into the global effort to prevent onward transmission of nuclear weapons knowhow. India’s formal statement to the NSG on September 5 reiterates India’s commitment to a voluntary, unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing. It pledges to strengthen the international nonproliferation regime, and undertakes to work toward a multilateral Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty. Implementing this agreement will give new energy to these critical nonproliferation efforts.

Energy and the environment: India’s energy demand is expected to grow 4.6 per cent per year for the next two decades. The whole world has an interest helping India deal with this relentless expansion. Nuclear energy currently makes up only about 3 per cent of India’s overall power supply. But with an economy growing at 7-9 per cent per year, every potential source of power is crucial. India has ambitious plans to expand civil nuclear power. Every nuclear power plant it introduces will take some pressure off the financial and environmental costs of conventional generation. We need this agreement, for our sake and for the sake of the planet.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh bet his government on this agreement, and won a vote of confidence on July 22. The government’s communist allies opposed the implied strategic relationship with the US. Their view lost, and when they tried to bring down the government, they failed. On India’s political spectrum, everyone except the leftist parties, which represent about 12 per cent of the seats in parliament, supports a strong relationship with the United States. This does not mean that partnership with India will always work seamlessly. Like any two large countries with diverse interests, we have our disagreements, and India has a strong commitment to maintaining independence — and the appearance of independence — in its foreign policy. But India’s basic hopes for the future are in line with ours. It is this convergence of interests that will strengthen our future partnership.

Now that the IAEA and the NSG have acted, we urge you to move ahead. The negotiations that produced the agreement were long and complex, and both sides have accepted provisions they might have preferred to write differently. In light of the long and difficult negotiations, we would respectfully ask that no further attempts be made to change the substance of the agreement. The benefit of forging a real strategic partnership with India is huge, and if we move ahead now, we should be able to strengthen global cooperation against onward proliferation of nuclear weapons. This is the time to move forward, decisively and fast.

This agreement is too important to be defeated by letting the clock run out.

Sincerely yours,

• WALTER ANDERSEN

Associate Director, South Asia Studies

School of Advanced International Studies

Johns Hopkins University

• MARSHALL BOUTON

President, Chicago Council on

Global Affairs

• RICHARD CELESTE

Former US Ambassador to India

• STEPHEN P. COHEN

Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies

The Brookings Institution

• AINSLEE EMBREE

Professor Emeritus of History

Columbia University

• SELIG HARRISON

Director, Asia Program

Center for International Policy

• ROBERT M. HATHAWAY

Director, Asia Program, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars

• KARL F. INDERFURTH

Director, International Affairs

Program Elliott School of International Affairs George Washington University

• ROBERT KAGAN

Senior Associate, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

• DENNIS KUX

Senior Policy Scholar, Woodrow Wilson Center

• JOHN B. RITCH

Director General, World Nuclear Association

• LLOYD RUDOLPH

Professor of Political Science Emeritus

University of Chicago

• TERESITA C.SCHAFFER

Director, South Asia Program, Center for Strategic and International Studies

• ASHLEY J. TELLIS

Senior Associate, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

• FRANK WISNER

Former US Ambassador to India

• HAROLD GOULD

Visiting Scholar, Center for South Asian Studies, University of Virginia

• DANIEL MARKEY

Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations

• THOMAS R. PICKERING

Former US Ambassador to India

• SUSANNE RUDOLPH

Professor of Political Science Emerita

University of Chicago

• HOWARD B. SCHAFFER

Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs

• RAY VICKERY

Stonebridge International

Former Assistant Secretary, Department of

Commerce