USATODAY.com - Rice defends nuclear deal with India

USATODAY.com - Rice defends nuclear deal with India:

WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called on Congress Wednesday to approve an unprecedented U.S. plan to share nuclear technology with India, saying it was 'not enabling a larger weapons program.'

Civilian reactors in India would come under international inspection and India's energy needs would get a boost, Rice said.

But India's work on nuclear weapons would not be constricted, and Rice's testimony was received with considerable skepticism. 'I fear this deal could make this world less safe, not more safe,' Sen. Russell Feingold, D-Wis., said.

Expressing concern, Barack Obama, D-Ill., noted that eight of India's 22 nuclear plants would be off-limits to U.N. inspectors 'and they will be producing large amounts of unclear material.'

So .. only some of India's reactors could be inspected to ensure that the material enrichment programme wasn't being abused.

When we're dealing with nuclear proliferation and a country which has tested nuclear devices as a show of bravado in a clow build-up of arms agsinst another very aggressive and proud neighbour, I think that inspection of some facilities isn't nearly enough in exchange for this information.

Screw that. If they want nuclear power, the UN should be ceded control of a very important section of land on the border of 2 or 3 countries. The UN builds the reactor and employs out-of-country labour (for better impartiality) and always a mix of ethnicities, and the UN sells the power back from the installation as a non-profit.