Getting membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) for India will be top priority when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits the US later this month for the fourth Nuclear Security Summit to be hosted by US President Barack Obama.
The summit, initiated by Obama in 2010, is aimed at preventing terrorists from acquiring nuclear weapons. The first summit was held in Washington in April 2010, the second in South Korea in 2012, and the third in The Hague in 2014.
Though the US has been expressing concern over the proliferation of small nuclear weapons in South Asia, this being the final year of the Obama administration, US officials are expected to push hard for concrete results during the summit. According to independent international security expert Theresa Hitchens, “There has been a lot of debate about letting India into the NSG. Incidentally, China has signalled that it may seek to get Pakistan in as a quid pro quo for not blocking India’s membership.”
When Modi meets Obama on the sidelines of the summit, besides seeking increased cooperation on defence, trade & investment and civil nuclear energy, the Indian prime minister will be pushing for India’s membership in the NSG.
NSG chairperson Rafael Grossi, also the Argentinian ambassador to Vienna, had visited New Delhi recently to meet foreign minister Sushma Swaraj as part of a diplomatic “outreach” that seeks to build a consensus to admit India at the group’s annual meeting next June. New Delhi had sought membership of the 48-nation club in 2010. Besides, discussions are on in New Delhi for the MTCR (Missile Technology Control Regime) membership later this year, which was stalled in 2015 due to Italy blocking India’s request.