The Labour party which is the ruling government in Australia headed by the country’s first female Prime Minister Julia Gillard, ended a ban on exporting uranium to India. The decade long ban was in existence because India has not yet signed the NPT (Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty). The lifting of the ban would be of immense help to India to meet the increasing energy demand of the country. India has a civil nuclear accord with the US and now Australia by lifting the ban is in line with the US.

Pakistan which has also not signed the NPT has expressed their expectation that they would also be treated in a similar manner by the Australian government. The Pakistani government has not made any request to buy uranium from the holder of the world’s largest uranium reserves but it said that this could change in the future. This was stated by the Pakistani High Commissioner to Australia, Mr. Abdul Malik Abdullah.

Australia lifts ban on uranium export to India

Report by Priyanka S Menon