nuclear-news

The unequivocal longer-term consequences of this policy backflip are aggravating India’s nuclear arms race with Pakistan and eroding the already failing brakes on proliferation of nuclear weapons. A nuclear war between India and Pakistan is not some theoretical possibility, but a real and growing danger. ….

Between them, India and Pakistan possess 170 to 210 nuclear weapons. Both add more each year. Indeed, Pakistan has the world’s fastest growing nuclear arsenal.

The consequences of any such war would be global. Millions of tonnes of black, sooty smoke from burning cities would cool and darken the Earth’s entire surface. Killing frosts, shortened growing seasons, rainfall decline, monsoon failure and increase in ultraviolet radiation would combine to slash food production around the world over successive years. Australia would not be spared.

Contrary to claims by the Australian government, India has an appalling record on nuclear proliferation. In 1974, India detonated a plutonium bomb, violating agreements to use only for peaceful purposes nuclear fuel supplied by the US in a reactor supplied by Canada.

Nuclear trade with India trashes a founding principle of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty: nuclear trade should be limited to states that have forsworn nuclear weapons by joining the treaty. A more effective way to undermine the incentive for countries to honour their non-proliferation obligations could hardly have been crafted. And on what consistent basis could Australia deny uranium to Pakistan, or Israel, or Iran?

A reason India wants access to nuclear trade including uranium is precisely to further its nuclear proliferation. Senior Indian military leaders have publicly said so…..

India reserves the right to classify future reactors as civilian or military. It was not required in return to commit to significant positive measures – indeed, it has made no nuclear disarmament commitments, it has not ratified the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, it has not stopped or committed to stop production of enriched uranium or plutonium for weapons, nor committed to full-scope safeguards…..

The South Pacific Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Treaty, of which Australia was a founding signatory, allows uranium exports only to countries that have full-scope, comprehensive nuclear safeguards in place. India has consistently refused full-scope safeguards, thus selling uranium to India would breach our international treaty obligations….

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/why-gillards-uraniumtoindia-policy-is-dangerously-wrong-20111211-1opki.html