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India's Seach for African Uranium May Conflict with African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty

posted by Zia Mian on Mar 24th, 2008 [11:36h]
under: India, US-India Nuclear Deal
last edited on Mar 27th, 2008 [19:01h]

During a visit to Namibia, India's Minister of State for Commerce is reported to have asked for uranium supply ("India seeks uranium from Namibia for enhancing nuke energy," thehindu.com, 27 March 2008). This echoes news that India may be seeking uranium from various countries in Africa that are not members of the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) as a way to avoid the conditions for uranium sales that have been imposed by the NSG (Ramesh Ramachandran, "India to tap uranium-rich Africa for fuel," news.123india.com, 5 February 2008). The potential African uranium suppliers that are mentioned include Gabon, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Uganda and Angola - some of which are major uranium exporters.

India is desperate to increase its access to uranium because domestic sources are increasingly insufficient to support its civil and military nuclear programs. India is not able to import uranium from the Nuclear Suppliers Group of countries because it is outside the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT). The US is seeking a special exemption for India from this NSG condition of supply but progress has been slow. There is domestic opposition within India to the deal because of fears that the US may use it to influence Indian foreign policy. Others worry that access to imported uranium for its civilian power reactors would allow India to divert more domestic uranium to its nuclear weapons program.

India has also been unable so far to agree with the IAEA a set of appropriate safeguards on the parts of its nuclear program that it has declared to be civilian. The NSG has also yet to formally consider a possible exemption for India from NSG rules.

Even if the NSG grants an exemption, some NSG uranium suppliers may not export to India. Australia's new Labour Party government has announced it will not sell uranium to India unless it signs the NPT (K. Venugopal, "Australia will not supply uranium till India signs NPT," The Hindu, 2 March 2008). Thus India's turn to uranium suppliers outside the NSG.

However, India may not be able to import uranium from any of the African countries that are not in the NSG.

All the potential African uranium suppliers that have been mentioned in news reports are signatories of the 1996 African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty, the Treaty of Pelindaba. Under Article 9.C (VERIFICATION OF PEACEFUL USES) of this Treaty, each Party undertakes "Not to provide source or special fissionable material, or equipment or material especially designed or prepared for the processing, use or production of special fissionable material for peaceful purposes of any non-nuclear-weapon State unless subject to a comprehensive safeguards agreement concluded with IAEA."

Article II. (DEFINITIONS) refers to "source material ... as defined in Article XX of the Statute of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and as amended from time to time by the IAEA."

Article XX of the IAEA Statute says -- source material includes "uranium containing the mixture of isotopes occurring in nature"

India is not recognized as a nuclear weapon state under the NPT and therefore according to the Pelindaba Treaty must accept comprehensive or full-scope safeguards on ALL its nuclear source or special fissionable materials and associated facilities to be eligible for the purchase of uranium.

The Treaty of Pelindaba has not yet entered into force. Its entry into force requires 28 ratifications, and on March 26, 2008 Mozambique became the 24th state to ratify it. ("Mozambique: Assembly Ratifies Nuclear Weapon Free Zone", allafrica.com, 26 March 2008).

However, under Article 18 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties "A State is obliged to refrain from acts which would defeat the object and purpose of a treaty when: (a) it has signed the treaty ... until it shall have made its intention clear not to become a party to the treaty".

This would appear to imply that no signatory of the Treaty of Pelindaba is allowed to sell uranium to India until India is subject to a comprehensive safeguards agreement with the IAEA. In short, India would have to give up its nuclear weapons program if it wishes to buy uranium from Pelindaba state parties.

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