Wassenaar Arrangement decides to make India its member

(Eds: With additional inputs)New Delhi, Dec 7 (PTI) In a significant development,elite export control regime Wassenaar Arrangement (WA) todaydeci...

(Eds: Adding a word in intro)New Delhi, Dec 7 (PTI) In a significant development,elite export control regime Wassenaar Arrangement (WA) todaydecided to admit India as its new member, which is expectedto raise New Delhi's stature in the field of non-proliferationbesides helping it acquire critical technologies.

The decision was taken at the two-day plenary meeting ofthe grouping in Vienna.

"Wassenaar Arrangement participating states reviewed theprogress of a number of current membership applications andagreed at the plenary meeting to admit India which will becomethe Arrangement's 42nd participating state as soon as thenecessary procedural arrangements for joining the WA arecompleted," the grouping said in a statement.

India's entry into the export control regime wouldenhance its credentials in the field of non-proliferationdespite not being a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty(NPT).

The WA membership is also expected to build up a strongcase for India's entry into the 48-member Nuclear SuppliersGroup (NSG).

Significantly, China, which stonewalled India's entryinto the 48-nation NSG is not a member of the WassenaarArrangement.

The Wassenaar Arrangement plays a significant role inpromoting transparency and greater responsibility in transfersof conventional arms and dual-use goods and technologies.

Its member countries are required to ensure thattransfers of these items do not contribute to the developmentor enhancement of military capabilities which undermine thesegoals. The aim is also to prevent the acquisition of theseitems by terrorists.

In June last year, India joined the Missile TechnologyControl Regime (MTCR), another key export control regime, asa full member.

Since its civil nuclear deal with the US, India has beentrying to get into export control regimes such as the NSG, theMTCR, the Australia Group and the Wassenaar Arrangement thatregulate the conventional, nuclear, biological and chemicalsweapons and technologies.

French Ambassador to India Alexandre Zieglercongratulated India on "joining" the Wassenaar Arrangement.

"One more recognition, after MTCR, of the growing roleIndia plays in today's world," he said.

In the plenary session, the WA reaffirmed its strongsupport for robust export controls on a global basis as animportant tool for ensuring international peace and stability.

It also adopted new export controls in a number of areas,including military explosives and specific electroniccomponents.

"Existing controls were further clarified regardingground stations for spacecraft, submarine diesel engines,technology related to intrusion software, software for testinggas turbine engines, analogue-to-digital converters, non-volatile memories and information security," the grouping saidin the statement at the end of the two-day meeting.

The next regular plenary meeting of WA will be held inVienna in Austria in December 2018, it was announced. PTI MPBSMNAQS.

This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.

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