November 21, 2008
US asks China Not to Help Pakistan
Build
New Nuclear Plants By Arun Kumar
Washington
The US has asked China not to go ahead with plans to construct two
more nuclear reactors in Pakistan without a "consensus" approval
from the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), a "difficult" task to
achieve in view of Islamabad's proliferation record.
"Although Pakistan's energy needs are real and increasing, we
believe Pakistan's proliferation record would make NSG consensus
difficult were China to request an exception," a senior State
Department official said in a letter to Democrat Congressman Edward
J. Markey.
In the letter released by Markey, a non-proliferation hawk,
Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs Matthew Reynolds said
Washington has already communicated its "position clearly" to
Islamabad and Beijing that the proposed construction of two more
nuclear reactors in Pakistan should not move forward.
"We have communicated our position clearly to our Chinese and
Pakistani interlocutors at multiple levels in Washington, Beijing,
and Islamabad, and have made plain our view that proposed
cooperation on Chasma III and IV should not move forward," Reynolds
wrote.
The US position is that cooperation on the construction of two new
reactors, Chasma III and IV, would be inconsistent with the
commitments China made at the time of its adherence to the NSG
guidelines in 2004.
"We also have been in contact with other NSG members, a number of
whom have expressed similar concern at the recent reports," Reynolds
said. "The US has sought and continues to seek clarification from
Islamabad and Beijing on this matter."
In a statement, Markey said the State Department letter
"unambiguously confirmed that providing any new nuclear reactors by
China to Pakistan is not allowed by the rules of the Nuclear
Suppliers' Group (NSG), which governs international nuclear trade."
Reynolds' letter was in response to a list of detailed questions
sent by Markey, a senior member of the Energy and Commerce Committee
and the founder and co-chairman of the House Bipartisan Task Force
on Non-proliferation, to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on the
possibility of a China-Pakistan nuclear deal.
"There is no doubt whatsoever that international non-proliferation
rules bar China from providing Pakistan with new nuclear reactors.
This is clear from a plain-language reading of the Nuclear
Suppliers' Group Guidelines, and I am very pleased that the Bush
Administration has agreed with this view," Markey said.
In his Oct 23 letter to Rice, Markey pointed out that "the provision
of new nuclear reactors to Pakistan would violate NSG guidelines."
In its response, the State Department agreed that the proposed
nuclear deal between China and Pakistan would "require consensus
approval by the NSG for an exception to the guidelines," he noted.
Asking China not to "violate its international obligations by
selling new nuclear reactors to Pakistan," Markey hoped "other
countries stand up to deliver the same message. Pakistan is
responsible for more nuclear proliferation than any other single
country; nuclear cooperation is off the table."
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