Left allows talks with IAEA, says no flip-flop

STILL AGAINST THE DEAL: Senior CPI leader A B Bardhan says Left position hasn't changed.

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New Delhi: The Left Front on Friday allowed the UPA Government to approach the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for talks on the Indo-US nuclear deal.

The Government will negotiate for a India-specific safeguards agreement and then brief the UPA-Left committee on the outcome of the talks.

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee announced this after a meeting of the Left Front-UPA Committee on the nuclear deal.

"After further discussion it was decided that the impact of the provisions of the Hyde Act and the 123 Agreement on the IAEA safeguards agreement be examined,” he said.

"This will require talks with the IAEA Secretariat for working out the text of the India-specific safeguards agreement. The government will proceed with the talks and the outcome will be presented to the committee for its consideration before it finalises its findings.”

"The findings of the committee will be taken into account before the operationalisation of the India-US civil nuclear cooperation agreement," said Mukherjee.

Sources said Left parties have not permitted ‘operationalisation’ of the deal and their talks with the Government will continue.

Asked whether going to IAEA meant operationalisation of the agreement, CPI General Secretary A B Bardhan told PTI: "they (government) are saying it is not."

When asked whether the Left had changed its stand on the nuclear deal, Bardhan: "no, it will go stage by stage, what is there"?