Personally, I think the US-India deal on civilian use of nuclear energy is a great move. I see the contrary opinions, given the India-Pakistan nuclear rivalry and the non-proliferation treaty, but there are such a thing as 'facts on the ground' and making the best of it. I am a bit surprised, pleasantly, to see that the IAEA praises the deal.
International Atomic Energy Agency chief (IAEA) Mohammed ElBaradei said it would boost non-proliferation efforts.
The UK and France also hailed the deal. But it was criticised by some members of the US Congress, who said it would lead to the spread of nuclear weapons.
Under the accord, India gets access to US civil nuclear technology and opens its nuclear facilities to inspection.
US President George W Bush - who finalised the agreement with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Delhi - called it "historic".
I think Bush is very right. The India-US alliance may well prove to be one of the most important long-term outcomes of the Bush presidency. The world's two biggest democracies, despite all their differences, surely have a common interest both as a way of checking Chinese expansion and Muslim extremist aggression.
Fact: A nuclear India is unlikely to be a threat to world peace. A nuclear Iran is a massive threat. Conflating the two is a silly legalistic argument that doesn't amount to much in the real world.
1:32:39 AM 
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