NSG pitch: PM Modi meets President Xi, seeks 'fair assessment' of India's application

Without clearing the cloud on the uncertainty to India’s admission to the Nuclear Suppliers Group, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup in an extremely brief news conference in Tashkent said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday urged Chinese President Xi Jingping “to make a fair assessment of India’s application.” [caption id=“attachment_2849480” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping. PTI[/caption] The Prime Minister conveyed to President Xi that China must contribute to emerging consensus in Seoul. However, citing it as a “delicate and complex” deliberation, the spokesperson refrained from making any comment on President Xi’s reaction to PM Modi’s proposal. PM Modi was received at the Tashkent international airport by his Uzbek counterpart Shavkat Miromonovich Mirziyoev. In the two-day summit, the SCO will start the process of India’s accession to the grouping as a full-fledged member along with Pakistan. However, the spotlight was on Modi’s bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping during which the prime minister was expected to seek China’s support for India’s membership at the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) that controls access to sensitive nuclear technology. Giving clear indications of its opposition to India’s bid for entry into the atomic trading club, China had on Wednesday underlined the differences within NSG members, saying “parties are yet to see eye-to-eye on this issue.” It, however, said it will play a constructive role in the discussions. Coinciding with the SCO summit, the two-day annual plenary of the NSG begins on Thursday in Seoul during which India’s application for membership of the atomic trading club is set to be deliberated upon. Prior to his departure from New Delhi to Tashkent, Modi said India looks forward to fruitful outcome from its engagement at the SCO summit. India’s entry into SCO as a full member will provide it an opportunity to have extended cooperation with member countries in areas of defence, security and counter-terrorism. “I will travel to Uzbekistan for a brief visit to attend the SCO Summit and interact with leaders of SCO nations. India is glad to be a member of the SCO and looks forward to fruitful outcomes particularly in the field of economic cooperation through SCO,” the Prime Minister said in a statement before leaving for Tashkent. He said India attaches great importance to ties with Central Asia and always seeks to expand economic and people-to-people ties with the region. Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs Sujata Mehta had on Wednesday said, “The process of India’s accession to the SCO will start with a signature on the base document which is called the Memorandum of Obligations”. Asked whether India will become a full member of the SCO, she said there was a schedule laid down for India to sign over 30 other documents and it will happen as the year goes by.