India needs to convince Australia, like it did with the Nuclear Suppliers Group, that it requires uranium for bona fide uses, vice chairman of the Australia India Business Council Ravi Bhatia said Thursday.
"We need to convince Australian Labour Party of India's bona fides much in the same manner as

we convinced NSG. This is a matter for calm and reasoned diplomacy and track
II activity rather than

of loud public debate," Bhatia said here.
India could sign the civil nuclear agreement with the US in 2008 after
obtaining a waiver from the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group, a grouping which trade in nuclear technology only with countries that signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Bhatia, who took over as vice national chairman of the apex business body recently, said he would work towards building stronger bilateral trade and investment relations with an aim to triple the two -way trade over the next five years.
While Australian Labor Party policy prohibits supply of uranium to non-NPT (Non-Proliferation Treaty) signatories, India has a long and distinguished record of compliance
with the NPT regime, he said.
He said that whatever concerns Australia has over supply of uranium to India, these can be
addressed through technology options. "There are of course technology options that can be deployed
to address any Australian concerns regarding possible diversion of uranium from civilian to military reactor."
Bhatia, who is also the CEO and founder of Australia-based Primus Telecom, said that Australia is important, in the long term, for India to achieve energy and food security.
As key littoral states of Indian Ocean, the two countries share a common security agenda. The
Australia-India relationship is clearly very important for both countries," Bhatia said.
Taking a strong view on the recent attacks on Indian students in Australia, Bhatia said fortunately the issue did not get accentuated as common sense prevailed.
He said that despite the student attacks issue it was not fair to dub the relationship of the two nations as 'troubled and appreciated role of Australia to train over 100 of senior Indian Police Service officers every year.