<p>Dubious entities based in West Asia and Africa have targeted India as a source to procure sensitive items, apparently for clients already tainted for being involved in illicit trade of materials that could be used to make weapons of mass destruction.<br /><br /></p>.<p>India’s Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) blocked export of several sensitive items to some importers in West Asia and Africa, after intelligence agencies found that the end-users had previous records of proliferation.<br /><br />“We have witnessed instances of would-be proliferators targeting India to source or route their supplies; our agencies have taken appropriate preventive action in such cases,” Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai said on Wednesday. He was delivering the keynote address at a national seminar on Strategic Export Control at the Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses in New Delhi.<br /><br />Sources told Deccan Herald that the DGFT and Department of Atomic Energy had last year turned down 13 applications seeking licences for export of items on the list of Special Chemicals, Organisms, Materials, Equipment and Technologies or SCOMET.<br /><br />India’s SCOMET list includes eight categories of sensitive items that could be used for both civilian and military purposes. The export of all the items on the list is strictly regulated by the DGFT and DAE. An Inter-Ministerial Working Group headed by Additional Director General of Foreign Trade vets all applications seeking licenses for export of these items. The ‘Category Zero’ of the SCOMET list includes “nuclear materials, nuclear-related other materials, equipments and technology”. The DAE issues licences for export of nuke materials after carefully vetting applications. Many of the applications that were rejected last year had been filed by exporters seeking licences to supply SCOMET items to certain entities in Middle East and Africa. Probes by intelligence agencies found that the entities seeking to procure sensitive items or the end-users had earlier been involved with network for proliferation of dual-use materials.<br /><br />According to the sources, the countries or non-state actors suspected to be proliferators often use innocuous importers based in other countries with impeccable records to dodge international export control regimes and procure sensitive dual-use items clandestinely.<br /><br />The SCOMET list also includes toxic chemical agents, other chemicals, micro-organisms, toxins, materials, materials processing equipment and related technologies, aerospace systems, equipment including production and test equipment, related technology and specially designed components and accessories, electronics, computers, and information technology including information.<br /><br />“As India’s integration with global trade patterns and supply chains deepens, it would increasingly become an important hub of manufacturing and export of high technology items,” Foreign Secretary said.<br /><br />The factors that are taken into account to decide fate of applications seeking licenses for export of SCPMET items include “credentials of end-user, credibility of declarations of end-use of the item or technology, integrity of chain of transmission of item from supplier to end user, and the potential of item or technology, including timing of its export, to contribute to end uses that are not in conformity with the country’s national security or foreign policy goals and objectives, objectives of global non-proliferation, or its obligations under treaties to which it is a state party”.<br /><br />India granted 158 licences allowing export of SCOMET items worth $ 47.57 million in 2011-12.<br />Mathai said that India was preparing to formally apply for membership of the four multilateral export control regimes – Nuclear Suppliers Group, Wassenaar Arrangement, Australian Group and Missile Technology Control Regime. <br /><br />“We believe that India’s membership of the four regimes will be mutually beneficial on grounds of common non-proliferation objectives, India’s ability to contribute to the fulfillment of those objectives, global industry cooperation and linkages, transfers subject to the highest export control standards, sound commercial considerations and the contributions etc,” he said.</p>
<p>Dubious entities based in West Asia and Africa have targeted India as a source to procure sensitive items, apparently for clients already tainted for being involved in illicit trade of materials that could be used to make weapons of mass destruction.<br /><br /></p>.<p>India’s Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) blocked export of several sensitive items to some importers in West Asia and Africa, after intelligence agencies found that the end-users had previous records of proliferation.<br /><br />“We have witnessed instances of would-be proliferators targeting India to source or route their supplies; our agencies have taken appropriate preventive action in such cases,” Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai said on Wednesday. He was delivering the keynote address at a national seminar on Strategic Export Control at the Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses in New Delhi.<br /><br />Sources told Deccan Herald that the DGFT and Department of Atomic Energy had last year turned down 13 applications seeking licences for export of items on the list of Special Chemicals, Organisms, Materials, Equipment and Technologies or SCOMET.<br /><br />India’s SCOMET list includes eight categories of sensitive items that could be used for both civilian and military purposes. The export of all the items on the list is strictly regulated by the DGFT and DAE. An Inter-Ministerial Working Group headed by Additional Director General of Foreign Trade vets all applications seeking licenses for export of these items. The ‘Category Zero’ of the SCOMET list includes “nuclear materials, nuclear-related other materials, equipments and technology”. The DAE issues licences for export of nuke materials after carefully vetting applications. Many of the applications that were rejected last year had been filed by exporters seeking licences to supply SCOMET items to certain entities in Middle East and Africa. Probes by intelligence agencies found that the entities seeking to procure sensitive items or the end-users had earlier been involved with network for proliferation of dual-use materials.<br /><br />According to the sources, the countries or non-state actors suspected to be proliferators often use innocuous importers based in other countries with impeccable records to dodge international export control regimes and procure sensitive dual-use items clandestinely.<br /><br />The SCOMET list also includes toxic chemical agents, other chemicals, micro-organisms, toxins, materials, materials processing equipment and related technologies, aerospace systems, equipment including production and test equipment, related technology and specially designed components and accessories, electronics, computers, and information technology including information.<br /><br />“As India’s integration with global trade patterns and supply chains deepens, it would increasingly become an important hub of manufacturing and export of high technology items,” Foreign Secretary said.<br /><br />The factors that are taken into account to decide fate of applications seeking licenses for export of SCPMET items include “credentials of end-user, credibility of declarations of end-use of the item or technology, integrity of chain of transmission of item from supplier to end user, and the potential of item or technology, including timing of its export, to contribute to end uses that are not in conformity with the country’s national security or foreign policy goals and objectives, objectives of global non-proliferation, or its obligations under treaties to which it is a state party”.<br /><br />India granted 158 licences allowing export of SCOMET items worth $ 47.57 million in 2011-12.<br />Mathai said that India was preparing to formally apply for membership of the four multilateral export control regimes – Nuclear Suppliers Group, Wassenaar Arrangement, Australian Group and Missile Technology Control Regime. <br /><br />“We believe that India’s membership of the four regimes will be mutually beneficial on grounds of common non-proliferation objectives, India’s ability to contribute to the fulfillment of those objectives, global industry cooperation and linkages, transfers subject to the highest export control standards, sound commercial considerations and the contributions etc,” he said.</p>
