#16/05/1998 17: 10

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Dipankar De Sarkar

BIRMINGHAM, May 16 1998 (IPS) - The leaders of the world’s eight most powerful countries late Saturday night issued a gentle admonition to India and Indonesia — the two Asian giants whose actions have threatened to hijack their ongoing summit here.

The Group of Eight leaders, comprising the heads of government of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States, condemned the May 11 and 13 Indian nuclear tests and called upon both India and arch rivals Pakistan to adhere international non-proliferation norms.

Specifically, the G8 and, on the sidelines, its four European Union members said India should sign up to a series of international treaties it has so far shunned as discriminatory: the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and the Fissile Material Control Treaty (FMCT).

But the G8 left a window of opportunity open for New Delhi. “We urge India to rejoin the mainstream of international opinion, to adhere unconditionally to the NPT and the CTBT and to enter into negotiations on a global treaty to stop the proliferation of fissile material for nuclear weapons,” the Group said.

New Delhi followed up its nuclear tests by offering to sign up to the CTBT with some preconditions.

“India’s relationship with each of us has been affected by these developments,” the G8 leaders said in their statement on political issues before retiring for their weekend retreat.

“We are making this clear in our direct exchanges and dealings with the Indian government and we call upon other states similarly to address their concerns to India. We call upon and encourage Pakistan to exercise maximum restraint in the face of these tests and to adhere to international non-proliferation norms.”

The G8 statement reflects clear divisions within the grouping on how to respond to the Indian tests. While the US and Japan have slapped a package of economic sanctions on New Delhi, their European allies have forcefully opposed such a move.

Separately, the European Union members of the G8 decided to forward that the issue of sanctions to the EU’s executive Commission, which will meet Wednesday. A decision on the matter will however need the approval of the EU’s ruling Council of foreign ministers.

However, a spokeswoman for Commission president Jacques Santer suggested that stiff sanctions were not on the cards, saying both Britain and France were opposed to such a move.

She said European Union countries wanted both India and Pakistan to start negotiations aimed at their joint signing of the NPT and the Fissile Materials Control Treaty (FMCT).

“Relations between India and the EU won’t go on as before,” she said, but added that “a lot of EU help to India is help they really need.” In addition, the EU would work with India, Pakistan and China to prevent the situation from worsening.