Statement of Congress President at the Occasion of approval of US Congress for Indo-US civil nuclear agreement Thursday, 02 Oct 2008

The passage of the Indo-US civil nuclear agreement by the US Congress is a landmark development. It marks the successful culmination of a process initiated by Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in July 2005, a process which, guided by India's supreme national interest, the Congress Party has throughout endorsed.

It is an acknowledgment of India's impeccable credentials and paves the way for India's integration into the global mainstream. This historic step as well as the NSG exemption has opened the door for India entering into civil nuclear cooperation with United States and other major countries with advanced technologies including France, Russia and UK.

This agreement will be mutually rewarding for India and the international community and shall help in the addressing the twin challenges of energy security and climate change.

This is a notable achievement of the UPA government and will contribute immensely in augmenting the much needed energy generation capacity for agriculture and in meeting our developmental objectives.

I specially congratulate the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh who has demonstrated a firm resolves in taking forward this bold initiative. This is also an occasion to compliment our nuclear scientists, who under the leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, made India self reliant in nuclear technology despite a discriminatory regime and denial technology for over three decades.