MUMBAI: Atomic Energy Commission Chairman Srikumar Banerjee has said an inter-governmental agreement between India and Japan on nuclear cooperation will benefit both the countries.
"We are having several rounds of negotiations with Japan....If we have an inter-governmental agreement, it will be beneficial for both the countries," Banerjee said.
He said there have been several informal interactions with Japanese authorities on this. "Scientist-to-scientist talks are also going on. I cannot say there is no coordination with Japan....An inter-government agreement has not been done yet, but both the sides are working on it."
Emphasising the importance of such a cooperation, he said, "Japan has been always a technologically advanced country, particularly in the nuclear area."
There are roadblocks, though. The Japanese Constitution prohibits civil nuclear cooperation with a country which has not signed the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT).
New Delhi has not signed NPT, saying it is discriminatory, and Tokyo has so far been declining to conclude a civil nuclear deal on this ground. However, there is some softening of Japan's position following the Indo-US nuclear deal.
In June, Japan came under pressure from the US and France to arrive at a nuclear cooperation deal with India, as American companies such as General Electric and Westinghouse have partnerships with Japanese firms for supply of materials, while the French nuclear major Areva has already bagged the Jaitapur plant.
After the Indo-US deal, France is the only country that has formally entered into a nuclear cooperation agreement with India.
Source: The Economics Times
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