Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will embark on a visit to the US on Saturday to join leaders of 42 other countries in discussing ways to strengthen global initiatives for securing nuclear material and installations, amid concerns of terrorists gaining access to these.
During the eight-day visit, Dr. Singh will also travel to Brazil to attend the Brazil-Russia-India-China (BRIC) and India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) Summits, where Iran’s controversial nuclear programme and the impending U.N. sanctions would be among the key issues of discussions.
In the first leg of the tour, Dr. Singh will be in Washington for four days during which he will attend the two-day Nuclear Security Summit and meet U.S. President Barack Obama and some other world leaders.
The Summit, an initiative of Mr. Obama, will focus on dangers posed by clandestine proliferation and illicit trafficking of nuclear material and the possibility of terrorists acquiring atomic material.
Dr. Singh is expected to share India’s apprehensions about terrorists acquiring weapons of mass destruction. The threat is greater in Pakistan, where nuclear material is believed to be not too safe.
He is likely to underline the need for greater impetus to securing nuclear material through physical protection and legal mechanisms.
Dr. Singh is also likely to propose setting up of an International Nuclear Safety Centre in India.
India sees the Summit and its associated preparatory process as important elements in strengthening international resolve to cooperate on nuclear security and supporting the expanded use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
“This will be to India’s benefit given our concerns on terrorism as well as our interest in the expansion of civil nuclear energy,” Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao had said a few days back while talking about the upcoming Summit.
India has, since 2002, been piloting a resolution at the UN on preventing terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction.
India is also active in the works of IAEA on setting and enforcing standards on physical protection of nuclear material and facilities as well as on combating illicit trafficking in nuclear material.
An outcome document will be issued at the end of the Summit that will outline the national responsibilities of countries to protect their nuclear material and weapons while adhering to international legal instruments and norms.
