What is Wassenaar Arrangement? It is an agreement to promote transparency and greater responsibility in transfers of Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies, a multilateral export control regime (MECR).It was established in 1996 as a successor to the Cold War Era Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls (Co Com) and is headquartered in Vienna, Austria. It has 42 members with India being the newest entrant. All the permanent members of the U.N. Security Council barring China are signatories of the WA.

The countries periodically exchange detailed and specific information on transfer or denial of items or technology, both conventional and nuclear capable, to countries outside the grouping. This is done through maintenance and updating of detailed lists, of dual use and munitions that are considered militarily significant.

There are various classifications of the sub-sections of the lists. The dual use list has for example, the sensitive list and the very sensitive list. The disclosure of such sale or transfer is voluntary.

It works according to Wassenaar Control List under which members agree to exchange information on sensitive dual-use goods and technologies and report on such transfers and denials of controlled items to non-participants.

What are the benefits of India’s entry to Wassenaar Arrangement? India had declared a Special Chemicals, Organisms, Materials, Equipment and Technologies (SCOMET) list in April. Through SCOMET list India listed its dual use technologies under its Foreign Trade Policy to make India’s export controls in line with the Wassenaar Arrangement.

It will get access to dual-use technologies: that can be used for both civil and military purposes.

It would boost to NSG membership: India’s entry into two export-control regimes will give it the necessary leverage to get admission into the Nuclear Suppliers Group, which China continues to block.

This would ensure reaffirmation of India’s position as a responsible nation in the arena of dual-use goods and technology, besides transfer of conventional arms.

It would also trigger boost to Defence and Space segments: DRDO and ISRO had restricted access to cryogenic technology, ICBM technology etc. Now there will be realignment of export control regime providing access to critical technology for India.

This would target industrial tie-ups facilitating entry to WA is expected to facilitate high technology tie-ups with Indian industry through our eligibility for certain licensing exemptions.

A few other major Export Control Regimes: Australia Group: It is an informal group of 42 countries aiming to control the spread of chemical and biological weapons

Nuclear Suppliers group: It is a group of 48 nuclear supplier countries to frame and implements rules for exporting nuclear equipment, with a view to control the spread of nuclear weapons

Missile Technology Control Regime: It is a voluntary partnership among 35 countries to prevent the proliferation of missile and unmanned aerial vehicle technology capable of carrying above 500 kg payload for more than 300 km.

China is still not a member of export control regimes except NSG. The reason for this was mainly because India had not acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty which aims to prevent spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology and promote nuclear disarmament, which India considered discriminatory since it could do so only as a non-nuclear power. That would mean that the five permanent members of the UN Security Council — the U.S., the U.K., China, France and Russia — coincidentally all nuclear powers, would in effect continue to deny India the recognition as a nuclear power as well, even though it was widely acknowledged as a nuclear capable country after the 1974 “peaceful nuclear explosion” at Pokhran.

There are more or less the same countries in all these groupings, with one crucial exception. China, which has been opposed to India’s entry into the NSG, is not part of both the MTCR as well as the Australia Group. So it should be easier to get into the Australia Group

Concluding Remark: India will be able to more easily access dual use technologies and materials and military equipment that are proscribed for non-participating members. India will also be able to sell its nuclear reactors and other materials and equipment indigenously produced without attracting adverse reactions.

It will also be in a better position to collaborate with other countries in developing such capabilities. India wanted to break out into the open and be recognised as a nuclear power like the other nuclear countries and be part of the global nuclear order, not as a nuclear hold out. For that to happen, India needed to be recognised as a nuclear power and be made part of the global non-proliferation architecture.

There are four groupings of countries that multilaterally work to prevent and address proliferation of nuclear weapons, the technology that enables making of nuclear weapons and the systems that are capable of delivering those weapons. The Wassenaar Arrangement is one such.

The Missile Control Technology Regime (MTCR) is another; India became a member of this grouping last year. The Australia Group and the Nuclear Suppliers Group are the other two; India is not a member of either yet.