India and Russia sign nuclear deal for series of 12 reactors

INDIA and Russia signed a nuclear co-operation agreement yesterday and chalked out an ambitious road map for a series of nuclear reactors to be built in India with Russian help.

The agreements, signed at the end of talks between visiting Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin and his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh, will include the construction of about a dozen nuclear reactors.

"We are building a strategic partnership with India in the nuclear sector," Mr Putin told business leaders in a video conference earlier yesterday.

No exact figure was given on the number of reactors Russia will build, although in December Russia's nuclear energy chief Sergei Kiriyenko had said Moscow would build up to 20 reactors at three sites in India.

Mr Singh said the two sides had completed several important and long-pending defence co-operation projects, emphasising that ties remained close.

"We regard Russia as a trusted and reliable strategic partner," Mr Singh said after the talks.

The two sides signed a 1bn deal to sell MiG-29K aircraft carrier-based fighter jets to India, with the first deliveries to begin in 2012.

The two leaders also agreed to intensify their consultations on Afghanistan in tackling the challenges posed by terrorism and extremism in the region, Mr Singh said.

Earlier, Mr Putin told the business leaders that the activities of extremist groups in Afghanistan and Pakistan were a "matter of worry for the entire region and the whole world."

"Parts of Afghanistan's soil continue to be used by terror groups. We understand the concerns of India regarding the activities of banned outfits in Pakistan," he said.