President Obama and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi entered into a “breakthrough” nuclear agreement Sunday in what will likely be one of the most significant outcomes of the president’s heavily symbolic swing through India.
The deal would shift liability off American companies and onto insurers in the event of a nuclear accident in India, a move aimed at drawing foreign businesses to the country who would otherwise avoid setting up reactors there.
U.S. Ambassador Rich Verma said the agreement also addresses concerns over tracking nuclear materials in India, though he stressed the deal concerned only the two governments involved.
“Ultimately it’s up to the companies to go forward,” Verma said Sunday in New Delhi.
Ben Rhodes, a White House national security adviser, called the agreement a “breakthrough.”
Obama became the first U.S. president to visit India twice during his time in office Sunday when he arrived in the country to attend the Republic Day parade.
His trip has been marked by a series of good-will displays and affirmations of the friendly relations between the U.S. and Modi’s governments.
The Indian prime minister even hugged Obama upon his arrival in the country and refers to him as “Barack,” Reuters reports.
Although Obama cut his travel plans short in order to travel to Saudi Arabia and pay respects to the late King Abdullah, his time in India has produced a clean energy agreement and a defense framework that outlined a strategic partnership for the next decade.
