US NSA Jake Sullivan's India Visit: Civil-Nuclear Cooperation Between Firms On Cards

 The US is finalising necessary steps to "remove" hurdles for civil nuclear partnership between Indian and American firms, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Monday, giving a fresh momentum to the implementation of a landmark pact sealed by the two sides 16 years back.

In an address at the IIT-Delhi, Sullivan, who is on a two-day visit to India, also slammed China for its "predatory industrial strategies" and virtually cautioned Beijing against "weaponization" of interdependencies while highlighting issues relating to supply chains.

The significant announcement by the top official of the outgoing Biden administration on the civil nuclear cooperation came hours after he held separate talks with NSA Ajit Doval and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

India and the US unveiled an ambitious plan to co-operate in civil nuclear energy in July 2005 following then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's meeting with American President George W Bush.

The historic civil nuclear agreement was finally sealed around three years later following a series of negotiations. It was expected to pave the way for allowing the US to share civilian nuclear technology with India.

The Biden administration's decision to remove long-standing regulations for civil-nuclear partnership with India is expected to facilitate construction of US nuclear power plants in the country.

"Although former President (George W) Bush and former Prime Minister (Manmohan) Singh laid out a vision of civil nuclear cooperation nearly 20 years ago, we have yet to fully realise it," Sullivan said in his address at the IIT-Delhi.

He said the Biden administration has determined that it is time to take the next major step in "cementing" this partnership.

"So today I can announce that the United States is now finalising the necessary steps to remove long-standing regulations that have prevented civil nuclear cooperation between India's leading nuclear entities and US companies," Sullivan said.

"The formal paperwork will be done soon, but this will be an opportunity to turn the page on some of the frictions of the past and create opportunities for entities that have been on restricted lists in the US to come off those lists and enter into deep cooperation with the US," he said.

People familiar with the matter said the steps are expected to benefit nuclear research centres -- Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) and Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR) -- and Indian Rare Earth besides some other entities.

Sullivan described the move by the US as a "statement of confidence" in the progress the two countries have made and the progress the two nations will continue to make as strategic partners and as "countries who share a commitment to peaceful nuclear cooperation".

The US NSA said India and the US were able to open a "new chapter" in their partnership under Joe Biden's presidency in the last four years but at the same time noted that the sides had to navigate turbulence, legacy issues including tensions over trade and human rights.

"But we've navigated these issues together with our eye on the long game and our ability to do so reflects the deep and enduring resilience between the US and India across generations, across administrations and yes, across the aisle," he said.

Sullivan also announced that India-US commercial and civil space Partnership is set to "lift off" with President Biden signing certain papers.

This move, he said, will help bolster cooperation in areas of missile technology.

In the address, Sullivan also slammed China for its "predatory industrial strategies" in certain critical sectors including in manufacturing of chips, clean energy and other emerging technologies.

The US companies looking for more resilience in both their markets and their supply chains are shifting out of China and expanding into India.

"Take, for example, Apple's significant investment in Indian production. Within the next couple of years, over 1/4 of all iPhones in the world will be made right here in India," he said.

While talking about supply chains, Sullivan said the US , India and other key democratic nations have all been reminded "abruptly and sharply" that "we cannot ignore the ways in which interdependencies can be weaponized against us", remarks seen as directed at China.

"We've seen countries lose access to critical minerals that support our clean energy, we've seen companies struggling to compete against China's predatory industrial strategies in chips and clean energy and other emerging technologies," he said.

"We've seen repeated attacks on industries tied to our structure which is heightening the risks not only to cyber espionage but of destructive sabotage," he added.

That's why, he said, India and the US are investing in national programs and sectors that have become "overly reliant on a single country".

In his address, Sullivan also said that India-US collaboration is crucial for peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.

The US and India are eventually helping countries across the Indo-Pacific region in upgrading their defensive capabilities as well.

"Because that is a critical goal that unites us to ensure a more free, more secure, more prosperous and more resilient Indo Pacific region. And in fact, the stronger defence cooperation between the US and India is already enabling greater security across the region," the US NSA said.

Sullivan said the ties between the two nations are also critical to bringing stability and prosperity to like-minded "friends" around the world, especially the emerging nations.

"So we are deeply invested in India's success and I believe India is deeply invested in ours. Right now, over 1,000 American companies are operating in India, over USD 50 billion in foreign direct investment flowed into India from the United States," he said.

Sullivan noted that Indian private sector investment in the US recently surpassed that of China.

He also said that US-India relations have fundamentally reached a new level of cooperation in the last four years under the Biden administration.