Biden's farewell moves on India: US removes Barc, two other institutions from sanctions list

The United States on Wednesday removed three Indian nuclear institutions from its ‘restrictive entity list.’ The three institutions are Indian Rare Earths (IRE), the Indira Gandhi Atomic Research Centre (IGCAR), and the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (Barc).

The developments come a week after US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan’s visit to India. He said during his visit that Washington was finalising steps to “remove hurdles for a civil nuclear partnership between Indian and American firms”.

The United States' Bureau of Industry & Security removed 3 Indian entities from its restrictive list.

"The removal of Indian entities Indian Rare Earths, Indira Gandhi Atomic Research Center (IGCAR), and Bhabha Atomic Research Center (BARC) will support U.S. foreign policy… pic.twitter.com/kJafpB3xMm

— ANI (@ANI) January 15, 2025

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This step will boost energy cooperation and nuclear research between the US and India. The restrictions were imposed during the Cold War.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) of the US Department of Commerce emphasised that US foreign policy objectives would be fulfilled after the removal of restrictions.

Imposed during the Cold War era, the removal of sanctions on these three Indian entities will reducing barriers to advanced energy cooperation, including joint research and development and science and technology cooperation, towards shared energy security needs and goals, the BIS said in a statement.

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The BIS said that the US and India share a commitment to advancing peaceful nuclear cooperation and associated research and development activities, with strengthened science and technology cooperation over the past several years.

“As these actions demonstrate, the Entity List is a powerful tool that can be used to shape behaviour that advances US national security and global cooperation,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security Alan F Estevez.

The move comes just as President Joe Biden’s term is coming to an end and President-elect Donald Trump is set to take over the presidency.

India’s former Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, welcomed the move and described it as a result of a “deepening” India-US partnership.

The decision comes on the same day when the US Department of Commerce added 11 Chinese entities to its ‘Entity List’ as Washington believed these entities were doing “activities contrary to US national security and foreign policy interests.”

The US Entity List is a list of foreign companies and organisations that face restrictions on receiving certain goods and technologies from the US. The BIS in the US Department of Commerce maintains the list. The main aim of these restrictions is to prevent any harm to the national security or foreign policy of the US.