Introduction to International Politics
Foreign Event Analysis
| Locale | ![[]](http://www.kvasaheim.com/flags/flag15-in.png "Flag of India") | India |
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| Title |
Bush signs US-India Nuclear Trade Agreement
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| Summary |
A week after the deal was ratified by Congress, President Bush signed legislation to enact a US-India nuclear trade agreement. The pact will provide India with access to US nuclear fuel, reactors and technology in exchange for permitting United Nations inspections of some of India’s civilian nuclear facilities, but not any of its military nuclear sites. Such a trade was banned by Washington in 1974 when India first tested nuclear weapons. However, US officials now say India needs assistance to meet its energy needs because of rising oil prices and global warming concerns. President Bush says that this agreement sends a signal to the rest of the world --- “nations that follow the path to democracy and responsible behavior will find a friend in the United States."
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| Analysis |
Through this nuclear trade agreement, India and the US will be granted access to each other’s nuclear technology and facilities. Though, the principle of the situation is much bigger than this trade-off. The fact that both states could come to an agreement on such a sensitive subject is noteworthy because it shows the growing ties between the world’s two largest democracies. The need and desire for communication and compromise across these states is evident.
Because of this trade agreement between them, India and the US will (theoretically) not go to war with each other. The liberal perspective highlights this very idea. The more trade there is between states, the less likely they will go to war with each other because their interdependence locks them in to peace. India and the US will now act in a way that sustains their trade agreement. Good relations and successful negotiations between these states must be maintained; so in a sense, the trade agreement (while about nuclear weapons) is a form of diplomacy between India and the US.
Perhaps other states will see the nuclear trade agreement between India and the US as incentive to create their own nuclear trade agreements. Worst-case scenario, a nuclear arms race is triggered. According to the liberal perspective, this situation will result in minimum deterrence. The threat of nuclear weapons would work towards more arms control and peaceful settlements of disputes between states because the incentives for cooperation will be strengthened.
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| Perspective |  | Liberal |
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| Submitted | October 9, 2008 at 10:58 am | |
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