Yesterday, during Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Canada to take part in the G-20 summit, India and Canada have signed a nuclear agreement to promote and develop co-operation in civilian nuclear energy. The Nuclear Cooperation Agreement (NCA) will see Canadian uranium exported to India as part of a wide-ranging pledge to increase trade. The agreement also includes co-operation in the fields of nuclear waste management and radiation safety.

Prime Ministers Harper, Singh standing as NCA is signed

Immediately after wrapping up the two-day G20 summit at the Toronto Convention Center, Prime Minister Stephen Harper was off to a bilateral meeting and dinner with Indian Prime Minister Dr.  Manmohan Singh at the Westin hotel. The deal signed Sunday night has been in the works for some time and was discussed when Mr. Harper visited India late last year. Several Conservative cabinet ministers from Harper’s cabinet were hand for the dinner, including Trade Minister Peter Van Loan.  Also,  Dr. Srikumar Banerjee, Chairman of India’s Department of Atomic Energy was on hand for the signature.

Canadian Prime Minister Harper speaks, Indian PM Dr. Singh (in turban) looks on

“India fully reciprocates Canada’s desire to intensify our bilateral relations in all areas,” Mr. Singh said at the dinner.  The two countries expressed their desire to increase annual bilateral trade to $15 billion by 2015 and to encourage two-way flow of investments.

India and Canada are likely to sign a civil nuclear cooperation agreement within the next few days.

“We don’t look back, we look at the future,” Vivek Katju, Secretary (West) with India’s  External Affairs Ministry said on Tuesday this week, “There has been progress on finalizing an agreement on cooperation in nuclear energy.”  Katju is a senior career bureaucrat, a former ambassador to several countries and a member of the Indian Foreign Service, 1972 batch.

Katju confirmed that the nuclear energy agreement would cover sale of uranium as well as areas such as research and nuclear waste management. Asked if the proposed agreement allowed sale of nuclear energy reactors by Canadian companies, Katju referred reporters to the Department of Atomic Energy. According the Indian media,the pact is expected to include this provision. The agreement is expected to be on the lines that India has signed with countries such as the US, France and Russia.

India Expert believes the the G20 summit in Canada this weekend offers the perfect backdrop for the signing of several agreements between Canada and India. The nuclear agreement could have the most impact and open up India’s vibrant market for Canadian purveyors of the “heavy water” technology and expertise which supplies almost all of India’s atomic power today.