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GC,
This topic has been beaten to death several times earlier. Fail to get your point and reasons. Let me cut it short...
The deal has restrictions inbuilt, but then we leave in a real world where nothing comes free. In its absolute terms, the deal is absolutely fantastic, something India needs immediately, whether You or Me like or not.
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Major,
The quantity of our deterent is not what I am worried about, but about it's quality, reliability and upgradeability. If we accept the deal, then we are limited to 200 or so Hiroshima sized bombs. Our current weapon designs are primitive by western (and even Chinese) standards, being too bulky and of small yield. To have a minimum deterrence, we need to be seen and also believed as being able to survive a first strike and still have enough left to completely overwhelm both Pakistan and China in a retaliatory strike. Our draft nuclear policy calls for such an overwhelming response to a first strike by our neighbours.
China possesses megaton nuke capability while we do not. Our current nuke designs provide a maximum of 200 kT of explosive power. Our military nuclear R&D will be stymied as the Brigadier writes in his article if we accept the deal. No amount of strength in conventional weapons will alter the balance of power between China and India if we accept the deal and limit our nuclear deterrence to the primitive state it is currently in.
I agree with Rajiv Srinivasan's approach-we need a minimum of 1000 nuclear warheads with many of them being over 1 MT in order to effectively deter China. This is definitely not a short term project, and it may take us twenty years to get there. Once we do, then signing the deal at that time will be acceptable. But until we develop an effective deterrent, this deal is premature and ill-conceived.