NEW DELHI, APRIL 27: Six months after he first aired his “personal opinion” on the Indo-US nuclear deal, former National Security Advisor Brajesh Mishra has openly come out in its favour, saying that not signing the deal would be a “severe loss of face” for India.

Last November, Mishra told The Indian Express Editor-in-Chief Shekhar Gupta on NDTV 24x7’s Walk the Talk programme that in his personal opinion “if I were to get credible guarantees from the government about the integrity of what we had left behind three and a half years ago, I would tell them to go forward with the deal.”

And now, appearing on Karan Thapar’s Devil’s Advocate programme for CNN IBN, Mishra said: “I think we should go ahead with the deal” Having promoted the deal in India and abroad — after all, our negotiators have been talking to various countries in the NSG — having promoted the deal so much and so strongly, not to go through with it is a loss of face for the Government of India and for India.”

Saying that “now” is the time to sign the deal, Mishra held that not going forward with the agreement would be a big blow to India’s three stage programme and efforts to develop nuclear energy. “Obviously dual-use technology will not be available to us if we don’t go through with this and, of course, it’s a set back,” he said.

Mishra, considered a close confidant of former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, said that he has met various government officials and scientists and has concluded that the deal would not impact India’s strategic programme or impose a ban on carrying out nuclear tests in the future.

“After the talks I’ve had with various representatives of the Government of India at a fairly high level and some scientists, I’m convinced that there is not going to be any major impact on the strategic programme through the deal “ this deal doesn’t stop us from continuing our strategic programme,” he said.

Mishra said that the deal would not come in the way if India decided to carry out any further nuclear tests. “Of course exercising that option means a lot of hardships — economic and otherwise — because sanctions will inevitably follow “ (but) we’re not barred from undertaking tests if we’re ready to pay the costs of sanctions, etc.” he said.

Asked whether the government should go ahead with the deal even if BJP and the Left remained opposed to it, Mishra said “That’s a political question “ my personal view is that given the harmful effects of not going ahead perhaps we should go ahead and do it.”

He also made it clear that renegotiating the deal after the US Presidential elections may not be a viable option as the new administration may have some “other ideas” regarding the agreement and it could become “very, very difficult to renegotiate the treaty”.