IRELAND AWAITING INFORMATION ON U.S.-INDIA NUCLEAR

UNCLAS DUBLIN 000292 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ENRG KNNP PREL IN EI SUBJECT: IRELAND AWAITING INFORMATION ON U.S.-INDIA NUCLEAR COOPERATION REF: A. STATE 42857 ¶B. STATE 34761 ¶C. DUBLIN 1334 AND PREVIOUS (SBU) Ireland looks forward to the USG briefing on the U.S.-India nuclear cooperation initiative at the March 22-23 Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) Consultative Group meeting as critical to consideration of possible exceptions to NSG Guidelines in India's case, according to Therese Healy, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) First Secretary for Disarmament and Nonproliferation. Healy noted that the GOI appreciated the USG briefing on the initiative at the October 2005 NSG Consultative Group meeting, but still sought answers to questions that the USG could not address fully at the time. These questions covered: the precise framework of nuclear safeguards envisaged for India; the time frame over which India would meet its commitments under the initiative; the legal relationship between the initiative and the 1995 NPT decision (reaffirmed in 2000) to allow suppliers to enter into peaceful nuclear cooperation only with those states accepting full IAEA safeguards; and, the challenges anticipated in securing U.S. Congressional support for the initiative. (Healy had raised these questions in previous discussions on U.S.-India nuclear cooperation, per ref C.) She pointed out that detailed information in response to these questions was necessary to allay Irish Government concerns about the ramifications of the U.S.-India initiative for international nonproliferation efforts. KENNY