A decision to offer uranium to India to fuel its nuclear reactors is perhaps Australia’s best gift to the country on the  60th anniversary of its independence.

With the US signing a civilian nuclear pact with India, Australia could not have been far behind as it decided late on Tuesday night to sell uranium to New Delhi after Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer convinced his cabinet colleagues that a uranium deal with India was in Australia's interest.

The cabinet’s National Security Committee signed off on the decision on Tuesday night. This does come as an exception to the rule and effectively reverses a bipartisan policy of 30 years, which has adhered to selling uranium only to countries that have signed the NPT.

India, Pakistan and Israel have not signed the treaty.

The Foreign Minister ruled out considering uranium sales to Pakistan “because Pakistan has a long record of proliferation”.

Australia has 40 per cent of the world’s known uranium reserves and is the top exporter.

Before the sale can commence, Australia will negotiate a nuclear safeguards agreement with India to guarantee that Australian uranium is not used for military purposes.

India will be required to separate its civilian nuclear energy programme from its military nuclear programme and the Australian uranium will be allowed to go only to its nuclear power plants.

Australian Prime Minister John Howard will contact his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh to explain the conditions of the proposed uranium sale deal before officially announcing the agreement.

Drawn flak
While the move has already drawn flak from a section of political parties and environment groups here, Downer called the critics “theoreticians” and himself a “practical person” who can see that this deal will strengthen non-proliferation.

Downer told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC): “India isn’t going to sign the NPT (Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty) any time soon... At the moment, India’s nuclear power plants are not subject to United Nations inspections. I think it is a good thing to get as many of them as possible under the umbrella of the UN inspections regime and to have proper safeguards arrangements for those nuclear power stations. That, if I may say so, enhances the nuclear non-proliferation regime. It doesn’t weaken it — quite the reverse”.

Downer told ABC: “If we were to export uranium to India, we would first of all have to await the conclusion of the agreement between the US and India. The agreement hasn’t been ratified. Secondly, we would have to make arrangements with the International Atomic Energy Agency. Thirdly, we would then have to negotiate a nuclear safeguards agreement with India. We would of course only export to those nuclear power stations which operate under the UN safeguards regime.”

However, Opposition Labour Party Leader Kevin Rudd, who is leading in opinion polls this Federal election year, has said: “It is a very bad development indeed when we have the possibility of the government of Australia stepping outside the NPT and saying it’s OK to sell uranium (to a country) which isn’t a signatory.

“Australia has always been a force for good on the NPT. Worldwide we’ve been out there upholding its fabric, under governments of both persuasions. But now we have a government of Australia pulling the rug from under the NPT and saying we don't need to observe it any more.

This is a significant breach from the consensus of Australian governments in the past and, I believe, sends a bad message to the international community,” Rudd noted.

Greens Senator Christine Milne told the media, “Australia's position is incomprehensible and intolerable in relation to pushing uranium into a global situation which is so unstable and with such high risk associated with it”.
The Australian Democrat’s Leader Lyn Allison told the media: “We could have used our uranium to leverage change with those countries. We could have forced India into the NPT and we chose not (to)”.

The spokesperson of a national environment organisation, Australian Conservation Foundation, Dave Sweeney, said: “Australia selling uranium to India would directly fuel India’s nuclear weapons programme and contribute to regional insecurity”.

“There is nothing responsible or neighbourly about selling a long-lasting radioactive legacy to India or contributing to tensions between India and Pakistan. Australia should get out of this toxic trade,” Sweeney added.