India, Mongolia sign nuclear energy agreement

India and Mongolia have signed a crucial agreement on the use of nuclear power for civilian purposes.

Mongolia, which is supposed to have plentiful reserves of uranium, is the 6th country with which India has entered into a civilian nuclear agreement after the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) revoked the 34-year-old ban on India. The NSG ban had prevented India from trading in the areas of radioactive substances and nuclear energy with other countries.

Mongolia is believed to have about 6% of the total uranium reserves in the world.

India already has civilian nuclear agreements in place with the United States, France, Russia, Namibia and Kazakhstan.

The new agreement – called the ‘Memorandum of Understanding on Development of Cooperation in the field of Peaceful Use of Radioactive Minerals and Nuclear Energy’ – will enable India to seek uranium from Mongolia.

The accord on nuclear power plus four other agreements were signed after detailed discussions held between India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Mongolia’s President Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj in New Delhi.

After signing the pacts, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told reporters that both India and Mongolia have also agreed to cooperate strongly the fields of mining, agriculture, health, statistical affairs, and cultural exchange.

Besides, the two nations also agreed upon bilateral investment protection and on ways to avoid double taxation, and on boosting cooperation, including the issue of terrorism and UN reforms.

India promised Mongolia a stabilisation fund worth US $25 million in order to ease the ill-effects of the worldwide economic recession on Ulan Bator, the capital of Mongolia and the country’s biggest city.

Mongolia’s President Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj said his country is “grateful to India for having provided stabilisation funds for the resurgence of its staggering economy.”

The visit to New Delhi is Elbegdorj’s first official visit overseas after he became President of Mongolia in June 2009.

President Elbegdorj is accompanied by a high-level delegation consisting of officials and businessmen, including the Minister for Education, Science and Culture; the Minister for Foreign Affairs; the Minister for Trade; and senior parliamentarians.
The Foreign Investment and Foreign Trade Agency of Mongolia (FIFTA) and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at strengthening cooperation between India and Mongolia in the fields of trade and investment.

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