India,eu ink nuclear cooperation pact

NEW DELHI: India and the European Union (EU) on Tuesday signed a civil nuclear cooperation agreement on the eve of a virtual summit, while Europol and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are negotiating a working arrangement to combat organised crime and terrorism.

The agreement between the European Atomic Energy Community

or Euratom and Indian authorities will focus on cooperation between EU’S research programmes on new ways of using nuclear energy and similar activities on the Indian side, EU officials said during a briefing for journalists.

“The agreement is on research and development cooperation for peaceful uses of nuclear energy, which was negotiated for 13 years and finally can be cemented by the summit,” said one of the EU officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The India-eu Summit, to be co-chaired on Wednesday by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, is expected to focus on strengthening multilateralism and global institutions in the face of the rise of an increasingly assertive China.

The leadership of both sides are expected to reiterate their strong commitment to combat terrorism in all forms during the summit, the EU officials said. The European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation or Europol and CBI are negotiating a working arrangement that will support law enforcement authorities of EU member states and India to prevent and combat organised crime and terror, they said.