New Delhi, July 9 (IANS): Russia came out strongly in support of India's bid for full membership of the 46-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group and underlined that the new guidelines of the NSG on sensitive technologies will not affect its "road map" for building more atomic reactors for New Delhi.
"No apartheid can be applicable to India. Russia's position is very clear on this matter. We want India to be a full member of the NSG and of other similar regimes. There has been no change in this," Russia's Ambassador to India Alexander Kadakin told Headlines Today news channel on Friday.
"As regards the renovated rules worked out by the NSG, we are confident that they will not affect our large-scale plans and bilateral 'Road Map' of March 2010 to develop peaceful nuclear energy in India," the Russian envoy replied when asked if the new guidelines will impact bilateral civil nuclear cooperation between India and Russia.
The NSG adopted new guidelines at the Netherlands meet June 24, which effectively ban the export of enrichment and reprocessing (ENR) technologies to countries that have not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
India has sought assurance from its key nuclear partners like the US, Russia and France that the new guidelines will not affect the clean waiver granted by the 46-nation nuclear cartel to India in September 2008 that re-opened global nuclear commerce after a hiatus of 34 years.
"India's record in non-proliferation is impeccable. By the end of this year, the first unit of Kudankulam (in Tamil Nadu) will be commissioned with the second one following suit after about six months," Kadakin said. "Our cooperation in peaceful nuclear energy is so deep-rooted and historic that nothing can prevent us from moving forward," he stressed.
The envoy also reiterated Russia's support for India's bid to join the UN Security Council as a permanent council. "Russia was the first out of all the five UNSC members to support India's strong candidature and we have been supporting it all the way. There should be no apprehensions about it," he said.
