United States and India Nuclear Cooperation Promotion Act of 2006

UNITED STATES AND INDIA NUCLEAR COOPERATION PROMOTION ACT OF 2006 -- (House of Representatives - July 26, 2006)

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Mr. HOYER. I thank Mr. Lantos for yielding the time, Mr. Chairman. I support this important bipartisan legislation, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

It is critical to note that this bill creates a two-vote process for Congress to approve this Civil Nuclear Cooperation Agreement with India. While the bill allows the necessary waivers to the Atomic Energy Act for this pact, it also requires that the President submit a final agreement to Congress for a second up or down vote. I want to congratulate the gentleman from California for getting us a process that gives us that opportunity.

In short, I believe a Civil Nuclear Cooperation Agreement with India will serve America's strategic interests and strengthen global nonproliferation regimes by bringing the majority of India's nuclear reactors under International Atomic Energy Agency oversight for the first time.

In addition, this bill will strengthen the relationship between our two great democracies. A civilian nuclear agreement will help India's burgeoning economy continue to grow, and it will provide India with a clean source of energy.

Now, it is true that India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, an international accord that I strongly support. But it is also true that India has honored the spirit of that treaty and has been a responsible nuclear nation for the past 32 years, unlike Pakistan, North Korea and Iran, I might observe.

Under this bill, the President is allowed to waive provisions of the Atomic Energy Act only after he sends Congress a determination that India has a credible plan to separate civil and military nuclear facilities. The President must also send to Congress a determination of an agreement between India and the IAEA requiring that agency to safeguard in perpetuity India's civil nuclear facilities, materials, and programs. In addition, the legislation requires detailed annual reports on the implementation of this agreement.

Mr. Chairman, I believe the House bill represents a policy that recognizes our Indian allies' responsible actions over more than three decades and our two nations' strong and deepening relationship. I thank the gentleman from California and Mr. Royce for their work on this bill and rise, as I said at the outset, in support of it.

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