New Delhi: In his final overseas trip as National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan announced that the Joe Biden administration will remove restrictions on Indian entities from US export control lists to enhance cooperation in the civil nuclear field between the two countries, but emphasised that the bilateral partnership can only reach full potential by adhering to shared democratic values.
Sullivan made this announcement during his visit to New Delhi on Monday, January 6, just two weeks before the administration’s transition in Washington. The change comes as president-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office for his second term on January 20.
The senior Biden administration official made a public announcement of the decision at a speech delivered at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.
He acknowledged that the vision for civil nuclear cooperation, outlined two decades ago by former US president George Bush and Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh, has not yet been fully realised.
“So today, I can announce that the United States is finalising the necessary steps to remove long-standing regulations that have prevented civil nuclear cooperation between India’s leading nuclear entities and US companies,” he stated.
Sullivan also noted that the formal paperwork would be completed soon, allowing entities previously on restrictive lists in the US to be removed and for them to enter into deeper collaboration with the US, its private sector, and its scientists and technologists, in order to advance civil nuclear cooperation.
He described this as the result of “India’s open and transparent engagement with our administration over the course off four years.”
According to the Entity List, India’s Department of Atomic Energy’s Atomic Research Center (BARC), Indira Gandhi Atomic Research Center (IGCAR), and Indian Rare Earths were subject to export controls, requiring case-by-case licence approval. This also extended to non-IAEA safeguarded nuclear power plants, fuel reprocessing and enrichment facilities, heavy water production facilities, and their collocated ammonia plants.
The presence of Indian organisations on US export control lists is not the sole obstacle to attracting more US firms to develop nuclear power plants in India. The primary challenge is often identified as India’s civil nuclear liability law, which permits plant operators to seek legal recourse against suppliers in the event of an accident.
Missile export control policies
A readout of the meeting between Jake Sullivan and his Indian counterpart, Ajit Doval, noted that the announcement was part of the briefing provided by the US official. Sullivan also highlighted recent changes to US missile export control policies under the Missile Technology Control Regime, announced last month, which are expected to enhance cooperation in civilian space initiatives.
In his speech, Sullivan not only listed the achievements in US-India cooperation, but outlined a vision for its future expansion through deeper collaboration, not only in emerging critical technologies but also in shaping international regulations for strategic technological domains.
“We’ve had to navigate our fair share of turbulence, legacy relationships, tensions over trade, as well as over human rights and the rule of law at home and abroad, but we’ve navigated these issues together with our eye on the long game, and our ability to do so reflects the deep and enduring resilience between the US and India,” he said.
However, he underlined, that deepening this collaboration can only be done on the foundation of shared “values.”
“And finally, our partnership can be most effectively sustained and can actually only reach its full potential if we live up together to the values that lie at the core of our democracies, respect for the rule of law that creates the conditions for dynamic growth, respect for pluralism and tolerance that powers innovation, and the protection of basic freedoms that unleash the human spirit,” said Sullivan.
The state of ties
Over the last year, the US has been repeatedly seeking “accountability” from the Indian government over ‘murder-for hire’ charges against an Indian government agent for attempting to assassinate a US-Canadian citizen, who is the legal counsel for pro-Khalistan organisation banned by Indian home ministry. Additionally, there has also had been criticism through US state department’s annual human rights country report about deteriorating human rights situation in India, which MEA had termed as being “deeply biased.”
Before his departure, Sullivan also called on prime minister Narendra Modi who posted that bilateral ties had “scaled new heights, including in the areas of technology, defence, space, biotechnology and Artificial Intelligence.”
The official US readout is largely similar to the Indian version. It says that Sullivan briefed Doval about the efforts to finalise
necessary steps to delist Indian nuclear entities, and updated export control policies under the MTCR that could boost commercial space
cooperation.
Note: This report was updated to include details on the White House readout.
