Faced with killer amendments tabled by two Democrats in the Senate, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Wednesday said that a nuclear test by India would result in "most serious consequences", including automatic cut-off of US cooperation as well as a number of other sanctions. As the Senate began a debate on a legislation that will stamp the approval on the Indo-US nuclear deal, Rice wrote a letter urging Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to go through with the process without amendments, saying the Administration would prefer a "clean legislation". "I understand that some Senators have questions about the impact of an Indian nuclear test on this initiative. We believe the Indian Government intends to uphold the continuation of the nuclear testing moratorium it affirmed to the United States in 2005 and reiterated to the broader international community as recently as September 5, 2008," she said. The Senate was originally expected to consider the Dorgan and Bingaman amendments pertaining to implications in the event of India conducting a nuclear test. But on the floor while taking amendments, the Senator from North Dakota Byron Dorgan announced that the two amendments would be merged into one. The merged amendment, if adopted, would ensure that the US ceases nuclear cooperation with India in the event of New Delhi detonates a nuclear weapon. Appreciating Reid's consideration of the Bill "within such an extraordinary time-frame", Rice said they wouldn't be asking for such exceptional action if they did not believe it was necessary to complete an initiative on which both the Administration and the Congress have worked very hard and on a thoroughly bi-partisan basis since 2005. Noting that some Senators have questions about the impact of an Indian nuclear test on the civil nuclear initiative, Rice said the US Government believed that the Indian Government intended to uphold the continuation of the nuclear testing moratorium it affirmed to US in 2005 and to the broader international community last month. "Let me reassure you that an Indian test, as I have testified publicly, would result in most serious consequences. Existing US law would require automatic cut-off of cooperation, as well as a number of other sanctions, if India were to test. "After 60 continuous session days, the President could waive the termination of cooperation if he determined that the cut-off would be 'seriously prejudicial' to US non- proliferation objectives or 'otherwise jeopardise the common defence and security'," Rice told Senator Reid. She said encouraging India's sustained commitment to its moratorium on nuclear testing will be important to the strategic partnership the United States now seeks to build with New Delhi. Congress and the Administration have carefully addressed testing concerns in the Hyde Act, the US-India 123 Agreement, and the testimony of Administration officials, the Secretary of State said. "We have an unprecedented and historic opportunity before us to help shape the 21st century for the better. With this legislation in its current form, the Senate can help ensure that the United States and India complete the journey we began together three years ago. "You can also help ensure that US industry - just like its international counterparts - is able to engage with India in civil nuclear trade," Rice said. The Secretary of State said the Indo-US nuclear deal marked the culmination of a decade-long process. Two successive administrations had sought to improve US-India relations and adapt American policy to India's emergence on the international stage. "For the United States, passage of this legislation will clear the way to deepen our strategic relationship with India, open significant opportunities for American firms, help meet India's surging energy requirements in an environmentally friendly manner, and bring India into the global nuclear non-proliferation mainstream," Rice said. Urging him to pass the Bill cleared by the House without any amendment, she said the current Bill advanced US- India relationship while enhancing non-proliferation efforts world-wide. "Amendments would unnecessarily jeopardise the careful progress we have achieved with India at a time when I believe it is important for us to seize the significant momentum we have created in the US-India relationship," Rice said. Zee News
