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Wassenaar Arrangement admits India: Why this could be a boost for New Delhi's NSG bid

The elite export control regime Wassenaar Arrangement (WA) decided to admit India as its new member at a two-day plenary meeting of the grouping in Vienna.
India "will become the Arrangement's 42nd participating state as soon as the necessary procedural arrangements for joining the WA are completed," Wassenaar Arrangement said in a statement.

This move is expected to help New Delhi acquire critical technologies, and raise its stature in the field of non-proliferation, even though it is not a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty, or NPT.
India has not signed the NPT, terming it discriminatory - as it only recognises nations which conducted nuclear explosive devices before 1967 as nuclear weapon states Membership of the Wassenaar Arrangement is also expected to build up a strong case for India's entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group - a 48-member group which controls the export of nuclear materials, equipment and technology.
Here's what you need to know about the Wassenaar Arrangement, in three points.
  • It plays a significant role in promoting transparency and greater responsibility in transfers of conventional arms and dual-use goods and technologies.
  • Its member countries are required to ensure that transfers of these items do not contribute to the development or enhancement of military capabilities which undermine these goals.
  • It aims to prevent the acquisition of these items by terrorists.
Since its civil nuclear deal with the US, India has been trying to get into export control regimes like Wassenaar Arrangement and the NSG. In June last year, India joined the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) as a full member.
China, which is not a member of WA, has stonewalled India's entry into the NSG.

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