WASHINGTON - October 8 - The Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation warned that the U.S.-India nuclear agreement signed into law today, which reverses long-standing U.S. policy to allow nuclear trade with India, has gone from bad to worse as India pressed the administration to go back on its promises to Congress.

Leonor Tomero, Director of Non-Proliferation at the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, stated: "This deal has gone from bad to worse. From beginning to end, India played hard ball and won. After the administration caved to Indian demands in negotiations for the past three years, dangerously undermining nonproliferation and disregarding Congress, it again sided with India against U.S. security interests and against Congress by trying to disregard the very minimal nonproliferation provisions included in recently-passed congressional legislation."

President Bush signed the legislation into law this afternoon and included a signing statement to allay India's concerns about the minimal congressional conditions that were included in the legislation. The statement noted, "The legislation does not change the fuel assurance commitments that the U.S. Government has made to the Government of India, as recorded in the 123 Agreement."

This statement contradicts the statements of policy by Congress in the legislation it approved last week related to the "Transfer of Nuclear Equipment, Materials, and Technology to India." Congress stipulated that it is U.S. policy to seek to prevent the transfer to India of nuclear equipment, materials, or technology from other participating governments in the Nuclear Suppliers Group or from any other source, and that any nuclear power reactor fuel reserve provided to the Government of India for use in safeguarded civilian nuclear facilities should be commensurate with reasonable reactor operating requirements.

The signing of the deal with India reportedly was delayed, despite Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's trip to New Delhi last Saturday, because of India's concern about the provisions in the congressional legislation and its preference to wait for the President to issue a signing statement about those provisions.

Tomero added: "The administration not only failed to protect U.S. interests and heed congressional conditions, but set up a framework that will allow India and other countries, including France and Russia, to reap the benefits of engaging in nuclear trade without any conditions."

It is expected that the U.S. nuclear companies will not be in a position to sign contracts with India for several months or years because India has not yet made a declaration of its safeguarded facilities or adhered to the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage which is necessary to provide liability guarantees to U.S. industry. French and Russian companies stand to benefit from these circumstances.