8th Aug 2007, 3:45 PM – Senate Motions — India and the Nuclear Non—Proliferation Treaty — Encourage to sign

The majority voted against a motion introduced by Greens Senator Christine Milne, which means that it was unsuccessful. The motion was:

(a) notes that:

(i) India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT),

(ii) the United States of America (US) and India have agreed to the terms of a deal to exempt India from US laws and international rules that seek to prevent states that are not parties to the NPT from using commercial imports of nuclear technology and fuel to aid their nuclear weapons ambitions,

(iii) under the India-US nuclear deal two reactors dedicated to making plutonium for nuclear weapons and nine power reactors, including a plutonium breeder reactor that is under construction, will be outside international safeguards,

(iv) India needs to import uranium to relieve an acute fuel shortage for its existing nuclear reactors and that importing uranium will free up more of India’s domestic uranium for its military program,

(v) Pakistan has expressed its fears about the India-US nuclear deal, and

(vi) any sale of Australian uranium would contravene the NPT; and

(b) calls on the Government to:

(i) reject any sale of Australian uranium to non-NPT states,

(ii) encourage India to join the NPT, and

(iii) use its position in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) to block the submission to give India an exemption from the NSG rules preventing the supply of uranium to non-NPT states.