THE HINDU Editorial Vocabulary- December 12, 2017- Topic 2

In an elite club: On India’s Wassenaar entry

India’s admittance into the Wassenaar Arrangement, a multilateral export control regime, as its 42nd participating member is a big step forward in its quest for formal acceptance as a responsible nuclear power. This has come a year after India made the request for membership. As a non-signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), New Delhi has been at pains to convey to the international community that it adheres to, and is invested in, a rules-based order. 

The Wassenaar Arrangement was founded in 1996, and is clubbed with mechanisms such as the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) and the Australia Group. Its stated aim is “to contribute to regional and international security and stability, by promoting transparency and greater responsibility in transfers of conventional arms and dual-use goods and technologies, thus preventing destabilising accumulations.” India’s Wassenaar success at the Vienna plenary meeting last week presumes a broad acceptance among its members of the country’s credentials as a fastidious adherent to export controls. It comes on the heels of membership last year of the MTCR. Ever since India signed the 123 Agreement in 2005, the underlying assumption was that the United States would help chaperone New Delhi into global nuclear acceptability after it separated its civil and military nuclear programmes and plugged the loopholes to prevent diffusion of nuclear materials and technology in a way that is demonstrably in line with best practices followed by the members of the NSG.

However, over the past couple of years it has become evident that Delhi has to do most of the heavy lifting to gain a seat at various global high tables. The Wassenaar Arrangement membership is also a lesson on the need for quiet diplomacy in sensitive nuclear issues, compared to the botched attempt to gain entry to the NSG last year. While India’s efforts at the NSG were stopped by China, which is not a member of the Wassenaar Arrangement, raising the pitch publicly at the time came with costs. It made the task of forging a consensus on membership to the NSG more difficult. And when that attempt failed, it gave the setback the appearance of being significantly more insurmountable. Nonetheless, now that more and more countries are signing on to India’s steadily strengthening credentials in the nuclear area, there is hope that a fresh momentum will be imparted to a future bid for the NSG. It will not be easy. The Australia Group, which focusses on biological and chemical weapons, may be easier to crack given that China is not a member. But meanwhile, the Wassenaar Arrangement will embed India deeper in the global non-proliferation architecture and enable access to critical technologies in the defence and space sectors.

Vocabulary

Admittance: the process or fact of entering or being allowed to enter a place or institution.

Example: People were unable to gain admittance to the hall

Synonyms: entry, right of entry, admission, entrance, access, right of access

Responsible: having an obligation to do something, or having control over or care for someone, as part of one's job or role.

Example: The department responsible for education

Synonyms: in charge of, in control of, at the helm of, accountable for, liable for

Adhere: stick fast to a surface or substance.

Example: Paint won't adhere well to a greasy surface

Synonyms: stick (fast), cohere, cling, bond, attach, be stuck, be fixed

Transparency: the condition of being transparent.

Example: The transparency of ice

Synonyms: translucency, limpidity, clearness, clarity; openness

Presume: suppose that something is the case on the basis of probability.

Example: I presumed that the man had been escorted from the building

Synonyms: assume, suppose, dare say, imagine, take it, expect, believe

Adherent: sticking fast to an object or surface.

Example: The eggs have thick sticky shells to which debris is often adherent

Synonyms: follower, supporter, upholder, defender, advocate, disciple

Assumption: a thing that is accepted as true or as certain to happen, without proof.

Example: They made certain assumptions about the market

Synonyms: supposition, presumption, belief, expectation, conjecture, speculation

Evident: plain or obvious; clearly seen or understood.

Example: She ate the cookies with evident enjoyment

Synonyms: obvious, apparent, noticeable, conspicuous, perceptible

Botch: carry out a task badly or carelessly.

Example: The ability to take on any task without botching it

Synonyms: bungle, mismanage, mishandle, make a mess of, mess up

Pitch: the steepness of a slope, especially of a roof.

Example: Keeping a steep roof pitch and adding dormers to the new second story are good options.

Synonyms: gradient, slope, slant, angle, steepness, tilt, incline, inclination

Appearance: the way that someone or something looks.

Example: I like the appearance of stripped antique pine

Synonyms: look(s), air, aspect, mien

Insurmountable: too great to be overcome.

Example: An insurmountable problem

Synonyms: insuperable, unconquerable, invincible, unassailable, overwhelming

Proliferation: rapid increase in numbers.

Example: A continuing threat of nuclear proliferation