India has supported the holding of negotiations on a Comprehensive Nuclear Weapons Convention at the Conference on Disarmament (CD). It reiterated its commitment to the disarmament of nuclear weapons in a step-by-step non-discriminatory process.

List out various factors which are preventing the nuclear disarmaments amongst the nations.

About the Conference on Disarmament (CD)

• The CD is a multilateral disarmament forum established by the international community to negotiate arms control and disarmament agreements based at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.
• The Conference meets annually in three separate sessions in Geneva.
• The Conference was first established in 1979 as the Committee on Disarmament as the single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum of the international community.
• It was renamed the Conference on Disarmament in 1984.

Recent developments from India

• India has not revised its key principles regarding the weapons in its arsenal.
• Raksha Mantri has earlier hinted at a possibility of changing the No First Use (NFU) principle by declaring that ‘circumstances’ will determine the “No First Use” stance.

India stands committed

• India believes that nuclear disarmament can be achieved through a step-by-step process underwritten by a universal commitment and an agreed multilateral framework.
• India remains convinced of the need for meaningful dialogue among all states possessing nuclear weapons, for building trust and confidence.
• India also remains committed to negotiations regarding a Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty in the CD on the basis of the report of the Special Coordinator or CD/1299 which dates to March 24, 1995.

B2BASICS

India’s No first use doctrine

For India, Nuclear weapons are political weapons and not weapons of war and their sole purpose is to deter the use of nuclear weapons by India’s adversaries. India has nit only established itself as a responsible nuclear state, but guided the world about how to be a responsible nuclear state through No first use policy.

Features of India’s nuclear doctrine:

1. Building and maintaining a credible minimum deterrent.
2. A “No First Use” policy i.e. nuclear weapons to be used only in case of any nuclear attack on Indian territory or on Indian forces anywhere.
3. Non use of nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapon states.
4. Nuclear retaliatory attacks to be authorised only by civilian political leadership through the Nuclear Command Authority.
5. Nuclear retaliation to a first strike will be massive and designed to inflict unacceptable damage.
6. India may retaliate with nuclear weapons to retaliate against attack  with biological or chemical weapons.
7. Strict controls on export of nuclear and missile related materials and technologies.
8. A commitment to goal of nuclear weapon free world.

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