IF one was not opposed to the nuclear device on the point of principle, as I am, one would applaud India for having forced its way through the 34-year-old nuclear isolation. It has become a nuclear power, an official member of the exclusive club, from being a nuclear pariah.

In other words, New Delhi can get nuclear technology, reactors and fuel from anywhere in the world. The 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) has not only lifted the ban but has also allowed India to retain nuclear weapons without signing the non-proliferation treaty—a right granted only to a five-member club, the US, the UK, Russia, France and China.

Yet it has been a victory of sorts. But for Washington’s full support all the way, New Delhi could not have obtained the waiver to test. Unfortunately, India’s enunciations were not trusted but Uncle Sam’s word was. This makes still clearer that America holds the key. In fact, Washington is the founder of the NSG.

However, the manner in which India went about getting the waiver made one feel small. Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee went on issuing one clarification after another and Indian top officials talking to the NSG members till early hours for three days at Vienna, assuring them India’s old declaration of “no first use” amounted to the guarantee required.

New Delhi did not have to do all this. It amounted to cringing before even a chit of a country like New Zealand, China’s pawn. India should have stood its ground and told the NSG that the unblemished record of non-proliferation was there for all to see. India’s izzat (respect) was hawked when the draft was revised and re-revised half a dozen times to “accommodate” a petty member’s petty objection. On the other hand, the big ones did not want a hick to sit at the same table.

The waiver was reworded to say: “In the event that one or more Participating Governments (PGs) consider that circumstances have arisen which require consultations, (PGs) will meet, and then act…” to see whether the NSG guidelines had been followed. This change was made at the urging of the club members, which did not want to acknowledge India as a ‘partner’ of the NSG.

It is not yet known what quid pro quo for the US support is. India’s statement after getting the waiver was that it would wait till the US Congress ratified the Indo-US nuclear deal so that Washington was there in the field when the orders for reactors were placed. It is strange that New Delhi should emphasise the immediate production of nuclear energy and, at the same time, Mukherjee should be assuring US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that India would wait till the US Congress cleared the deal. Suppose there is a delay, what happens to the reported offer by Russia to supply four reactors with 1000 KW capacity each even tomorrow?

In fact, America has made its position clear in a letter leaked by Howard L. Berman, chairman of House Foreign Affairs Committee. The deal would not mean transfer of any sensitive technology to India or uninterrupted fuel supply—a contradiction of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s assurances to parliament which could encourage the NSG countries. The letter also says that the “US government will not assist India in the design, construction or operation of sensitive nuclear technologies.” By insisting that the letter contains “nothing new,” New Delhi has implied that it concurs with the damaging US interpretations.

Australia’s post-waiver statement that it will not supply fuel to India indicates that America has many arrows in its quiver. If it is annoyed in any way with India, not necessarily over the nuclear deal, all facilities would come to an end. In fact, Washington’s eyes are fixed on the strategic alliance with New Delhi. America’s ambassador to India David Mulford has said even before the approval of the waiver that India and the US had already come close to each other in many strategic fields. Defence Minister A.K. Anthony’s visit to America, timed after the waiver, is more than a visit. This is ominous because it tells upon India’s non-alignment and the faith of many nations in New Delhi’s independent policy.

China’s second thoughts were a surprise because it had assured Manmohan Singh during his visit to Beijing that it had no objection to India getting the waiver. It was President Bush who rang up the Chinese President to withdraw the objection. America is not doing all this for selling reactors because after the NSG clearance India can purchase from any country which is cheaper. The reactors offered by Russia or France may prove to be better than the 10-year-old reactors which American businessmen have in their basement.

True, America wants to use India to counter China. But if Beijing continues to play a double game as it did at Vienna, New Delhi, by dint of circumstances, would be pushed to America’s side. What does the refrain of Hindi-Chini-Bhai-Bhai mean when Beijing strikes against New Delhi whenever an opportunity arises?

It was natural for Beijing to encourage Islamabad to have a parallel treaty like the Indo-US deal. Therefore, President Asif Ali Zardari’s statement that he is visiting China to have a nuclear deal does not come as a surprise. What one wishes is that New Delhi and Islamabad should be talking to each other on such and other problems because the two are natural allies.

The negotiations at Vienna should make India clear that China can never be a friend, much less an ally. Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru warned the country through a letter he wrote to chief ministers after China’s attack on India in 1962. “We do not desire to dominate any country, and we are content to live peacefully with other countries provided they do not interfere with us or commit aggression. China, on the other hand, clearly did not like the idea of such peaceful existence and wants to have a dominating position in Asia. We do not want communism to come here and yet the essential conflict is more political and geographical than that of communism, although communism is an important factor in the background.”

The BJP’s criticism that the Manmohan Singh government has given a secret understanding not to hold the test at any time is not convincing. As former President Abdul Kalam has said India will not honour any commitment when it comes to national interest. Presuming there is some understanding, I cannot imagine any government honouring any commitment if testing is required for the country’s security. Not to be the first user, a welcome unilateral statement, was made by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee after exploding the device. New Delhi should stick to it in letter and spirit.