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China says it needs no waiver for N-reactors
By Anwar Iqbal
Sunday, 04 Jul, 2010
WASHINGTON: China believes that its agreement to install two new nuclear reactors in Pakistan does not violate international obligations, says the Chinese Embassy in Washington.
In a statement to the US media, the embassys spokesman Wang Baodong told the US media that Beijing was convinced the reactor agreement goes along well with the international obligations China and Pakistan carry in relation to the international nuclear non-proliferation regime.
A US expert, Mark Hibbs of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, endorsed the Chinese position but urged Beijing to be careful.
The US doesnt really have any options.....the Nuclear Suppliers Groups guidelines are voluntary. There is nothing the US can do to prevent China from going ahead with this deal, he said.
Unless Washington comes up with a very, very attractive offer, the history of Chinese-Pakistani relations is such that it is unlikely that this deal will not go through, Heritage Foundation researcher Dean Cheng told the US media.
A State Department official disagreed with the suggestion but did so rather meekly.
The United States suspects that China would need a waiver from a nuclear export control group to move ahead with the sale of two atomic energy plants to Pakistan, a department official told the Washington Times.
Beijing is one of the 46 member states of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, which seeks to block access to nuclear technology and materials by nations that have not joined the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty.
Its guidelines prohibit any deal with the countries that have not yet signed the NPT, such as Pakistan. But last year it gave a waiver to India under US and international pressure.
Beijing contends that because it built two nuclear reactors in Pakistan before becoming a member of the NSG, the new atomic deal should be allowed.
The United States has reiterated concern that the transfer of new reactors at Chashma appears to extend beyond cooperation that was grandfathered when China was approved for membership in the NSG, US State Department spokesman Noel Clay said.
Mr Clay said if the new reactors did not fall under the grandfather exception then Beijing needed a waiver from the nuclear export body, similar to the 2008 allowance that has allowed India another nuclear-armed, non-NPT country to sign atomic trade deals with the United States and other nations.
The Nuclear Suppliers Group operates on consensus so all member nations must agree on granting the exemption.
We are still waiting for more information from China to clarify Chinas intended cooperation with Pakistan, in light of Chinas NSG commitments, Mr Clay said.
DAWN.COM | Front Page | China says it needs no waiver for N-reactors
By Anwar Iqbal
Sunday, 04 Jul, 2010
WASHINGTON: China believes that its agreement to install two new nuclear reactors in Pakistan does not violate international obligations, says the Chinese Embassy in Washington.
In a statement to the US media, the embassys spokesman Wang Baodong told the US media that Beijing was convinced the reactor agreement goes along well with the international obligations China and Pakistan carry in relation to the international nuclear non-proliferation regime.
A US expert, Mark Hibbs of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, endorsed the Chinese position but urged Beijing to be careful.
The US doesnt really have any options.....the Nuclear Suppliers Groups guidelines are voluntary. There is nothing the US can do to prevent China from going ahead with this deal, he said.
Unless Washington comes up with a very, very attractive offer, the history of Chinese-Pakistani relations is such that it is unlikely that this deal will not go through, Heritage Foundation researcher Dean Cheng told the US media.
A State Department official disagreed with the suggestion but did so rather meekly.
The United States suspects that China would need a waiver from a nuclear export control group to move ahead with the sale of two atomic energy plants to Pakistan, a department official told the Washington Times.
Beijing is one of the 46 member states of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, which seeks to block access to nuclear technology and materials by nations that have not joined the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty.
Its guidelines prohibit any deal with the countries that have not yet signed the NPT, such as Pakistan. But last year it gave a waiver to India under US and international pressure.
Beijing contends that because it built two nuclear reactors in Pakistan before becoming a member of the NSG, the new atomic deal should be allowed.
The United States has reiterated concern that the transfer of new reactors at Chashma appears to extend beyond cooperation that was grandfathered when China was approved for membership in the NSG, US State Department spokesman Noel Clay said.
Mr Clay said if the new reactors did not fall under the grandfather exception then Beijing needed a waiver from the nuclear export body, similar to the 2008 allowance that has allowed India another nuclear-armed, non-NPT country to sign atomic trade deals with the United States and other nations.
The Nuclear Suppliers Group operates on consensus so all member nations must agree on granting the exemption.
We are still waiting for more information from China to clarify Chinas intended cooperation with Pakistan, in light of Chinas NSG commitments, Mr Clay said.
DAWN.COM | Front Page | China says it needs no waiver for N-reactors
