Australia’s First Uranium Shipment To India On Its Way Three Years After The Signing Of Nuclear Pact

Three years after the signing of a civilian nuclear agreement, the first shipment of Australian uranium has left for India, the Economic Times has reported. The news was shared by visiting Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop, who met External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday.

India signed the supply deal with Australia - having world's biggest reserves of yellow cake - in 2014. Australia has about 40 per cent of the world’s known uranium reserves but no nuclear power plants.

This was the first nuclear agreement Australia signed with a country not party to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty and signifies the close relations between the two nations. Australia supports India’s bid for membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group and other export control regimes.

Apart from Swaraj, Bishop also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Defence and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. The ongoing standoff in Dokalam figured high on the agenda of Bishop's meetings. Talking to a group of reporters after the meeting, Bishop said China is practicing an increasingly assertive foreign policy, and it should adhere to international norms and order.

"This is long term dispute. While maritime border disputes should be settled based on UNCLOS, land boundary disputes should be settled peacefully. We don't want to see an escalation. Any miscalculation could lead to tensions," Bishop rem