Hailing the Indo-US nuclear deal, Brajesh Mishra, National Security Advisor during the National Democratic Alliance regime, congratulated the government on Friday over the safeguards agreement with International Atomic Energy Agency and cautioned against re-negotiating the deal.
Mishra, who held the dual positions of NSA and Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, said the draft safeguards agreement is "very satisfactory" and discounted the concerns raised by some quarters over India's military nuclear programme.
"It is as good as we could have got," Mishra said during an interview on CNBC when asked about the safeguards agreement which was unveiled by the government on Thursday.
Mishra said the specifics of the agreement with IAEA are the same as the 123 agreement with the United States. "If you are satisfied with it (123 agreement), then this is also good".
The government had done a good job on the agreement and "they have my congratulations", Mishra said.
On concerns raised over India's independent defence nuclear programme, Mishra said the criticism was unfounded as the safeguards agreement mentions New Delhi's military nuclear programme. "So they are making an exception for India".
Mishra cautioned against re-negotiating the deal with the US, a demand pressed by the BJP, saying it could mean giving up something. "Re-negotiation is between two parties, it is not a one-way street. We might also have to give up something. It depends on the political circumstances then," Mishra said.
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