A civil nuclear cooperation deal between India and the United States would not affect New Delhi’s relations with Tehran, Iran’s interior minister said Thursday.

Mostafa Purmohammadi said India’s proposed nuclear agreement with Washington was an “internal issue,” adding that Indian officials have “stressed that they do not agree with the unilateralism of America.”
“We would like to see India maintain its independence like before ... and not be influenced by outside elements,” Purmohammadi told reporters, in a clear reference to Washington.
Energy-hungry India is negotiating a proposed US$7 billion gas pipeline with Iran, which the United States strongly opposes because it claims Tehran is operating a clandestine nuclear weapons program.
Relations between Tehran and Washington are extremely tense, with the U.S. also accusing Iran of supporting Shiite militias in Iraq -- a charge Tehran denies.
There was no immediate response from India’s Ministry of External Affairs in regard to Purmohammadi’s comments.
His two-day visit comes as India and the United States try to finalize the nuclear cooperation program -- though the deal with Washington has become badly stalled in recent weeks.
The Iranian minister, who is in New Delhi for a regional conference on disaster management, described overall ties with India as “very deep-rooted and good.” He met with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee Thursday.
A civil nuclear cooperation deal between India and the United States would reverse three decades of American anti-proliferation policy. It would allow the U.S. to send nuclear fuel and technology to India, which has been cut off from global atomic trade by its refusal to sign nonproliferation treaties and its testing of nuclear weapons.
While it is seen as the cornerstone of a new relationship between India and the U.S., the deal is facing increasing opposition. India’s communist parties -- key government allies -- argue it could cap New Delhi’s nuclear weapons program and allow Washington to dictate Indian foreign policy, especially toward Iran.
Purmohammadi also dismissed new unilateral sanctions that Washington recently announced it intended to impose against Iran.
“We will do our best to ensure that American sanctions are not successful,” he said.
The U.S. is pushing for a new round of UN Security Council sanctions to force Iran to suspend uranium enrichment. Two previous sets of UN sanctions have failed to persuade Iran to alter its behavior.
(Source: AP)