Acknowledgement of being a responsible nuclear state and the opportunity to prove the same have both come to India in the first decade of the 21st century. As it charily assumes the posture of an emerging power with global ambitions, it becomes important that all pertinent states find mention in its strategic thinking. Of all the states in Asia, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea or North Korea is a curious case as it has found a place in the foreign policy discourse of India, but has not been allocated sufficient thought. With the adoption of a confrontational attitude towards horizontal proliferation, the Manmohan Singh government has chastised North Korea more than once for its nuclear related activities. Yet devising a policy towards North Korea is important for India for more than one reason. Besides being the ’rogue’ state with revisionist orientation in U.S’s eyes, North Korea is also a beneficiary of China’s nuclear assistance. With a history of contempt for international rules and norms, North Korea’s nuclear weapons capability and cooperative ties with Pakistan is a cause of concern for India. Amid reports of North Korea-Myanmar missile nexus, it becomes important for India not only to take stock of the situation but also to engage more with this reticent state, with which is boasts of historic ties.
India’s stand on nuclear proliferation and North Korea’s nuclear programme
Though India has not signed the NPT, it has taken a firm stand on nuclear proliferation. It has raised doubts about the legitimacy of proliferation and unlike Pakistan, has not aided any state in the development of nuclear weapons
1. This consideration has earned India the reputation of being a ’responsible nuclear power’ which has also helped it in securing an NSG waiver for nuclear commerce in 2008 despite not being a signatory to the NPT. India has argued that NPT is a discriminatory treaty on world forums and has demanded amends.
2 However, it did not support North Korea’s withdrawal from the treaty and acknowledged its obligations towards the non-proliferation regime and issued a statement expressing concern over its 2006 tests. As a reaction to North Korea’s 2009 nuclear tests, the Indian officials stated that the tests were a part of a ’dangerous trend’ and that India is ’against’ nuclear proliferation.
Regional implications: the North Korea-Pakistan-China triangle
It is important for India to look into the regional implications of North Korea’s nuclear weapon programme. North Korea and Pakistan share some common features which should not be overlooked. The two states have been termed ’too nuclear to fail’
3 and their revisionist and expansionist tendencies have been noticed by many scholars. Their nuclear programme shares a common character, which is its reactionary nature. Clandestine nuclear cooperation exists between Pakistan and North Korea, the former has aided the latter in securing nuclear technology and knowhow through the A.Q Khan network in the early 1990s. Though it is hard to know the exact details of the transactions and the extent of Pakistan’s government involvement in A.Q Khan’s affairs, it is widely believed that North Korea secured assistance in uranium enrichment from Pakistan in exchange of ballistic missile technology.
4 George Tenet, the former director of CIA has stated that the Khan network has sold nuclear designs and blueprints for centrifuges to enrich uranium. He believes that Iran, Libya and North Korea have received designs of centrifuges among other equipment. North Korea’s role in the development of Ghauri missiles is also undisputed.
5 The Khan Research Laboratories have been supported by North Korea in developing these missiles. U.S. reports suggest that Ghauri missile design is based on North Korea’s NoDong missile.
6 There is another dimension to this alliance. China features in the nuclear history of both the states. China-Pakistan nuclear cooperation began in 1970s, during the reign of Zulfikar Ali Bhotto. China has transferred Tritium gas, uranium enrichment technical know-how and heavy water to Pakistan.
7 China has also been involved in the development of Pakistan’s second stream of missiles, the Hatf-1, Hatf-2 and Shaheen-1 and Shaheen-2.
8 Time and again, questions have been raised about Chinese assistance to North Korea through Pakistan and its knowledge of Pakistan-North Korea nuclear cooperation.
9 China’s unwillingness to curtail assistance and support to North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs has been a source of dispute with the U.S.for many years. India should pay attention to these issues when it formulates its policy towards North Korea.
Endnotes:
1. RajeshRajagopalan, "Nuclear Non-Proliferation: An Indian Perspective",(October 2008) Briefing Paper 10,
FES New Delhi,
2.Leonard Weiss, "India and the NPT", Strategic Analysis 34:2, (2010) p.260.
3. Stephen Cohen, The Future of Pakistan, (Brookings Institution Press, 2011).
4. George Tenet, At the Center of the Storm: My Years at the CIA, (Harper Collins Publishers, 2007), p.294
5. Sharon Squassoni, "Weapons of Mass Destruction:Trade Between North Korea and Pakistan", CRS Report for Congress, updated March 11, 2004
6.
Unclassified Report to Congress, January - June 1999,
7. T.V Paul, China-Pakistan Nuclear/Missile Ties and the Balance of Power, The Nonproliferation Review(2003) p. 5
8. Ibid. also see: SharonSquassoni, "Weapons of Mass Destruction:Trade Between North Korea and Pakistan", CRS Report for Congress, updated March 11, 2004.
9.ShirleyKan, "China and Proliferation of Weapons of MassDestruction and Missiles", CSR Report for Congress, updated on April 25, 2012.
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