New Delhi: Australia has lifted the ban on sale of Uranium to India, but has said that its nuclear inspectors would check that Uranium exported is used only for peaceful purposes and ensure none is diverted for weapons programmes.
Australia possesses 40 per cent of the world's reserves of Uranium that were only available to countries that have signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) earlier.
Australia's chief nuclear adviser has however said that if India won't give up testing nuclear weapons, Australia will have to pull out of a proposal to sell uranium.
Ziggy Switkowski, chairman of the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, said he expected a ban on nuclear testing to be part of any deal with Australia.
Asked the reaction if India wouldn't agree, Switkowski said: "I think at that stage we have to reverse out of the agreement in terms of supplying Australian uranium."
India would have to play by acceptable international rules if it wanted Australian uranium, he was quoted as saying in Herald Sun.
"To be allowed access in one case to American technology for new generation reactors and to our high quality uranium you've got to be prepared to accommodate the rules that govern reasonable international behaviour," he was quoted as saying.
"I think continuing weapons testing would compromise that kind of a situation. As I understand it, an agreement with Australia requires an agreement with the US to be in place. That agreement is not yet there" Switkowski, who also headed a government task force into nuclear power, added.
(With inputs from PTI)
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