What happened?
The United States Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) on January 15, 2025, removed three prominent Indian government-run entities—Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Indira Gandhi Atomic Research Centre (IGCAR), and Indian Rare Earths Limited (IREL)—from the Entity List, paving the way for advanced energy cooperation between the U.S. and India. Notably, following India’s nuclear tests in 1998, the U.S. had imposed an embargo on Indian atomic energy companies.
Why it mattered to India
The decision comes in the backdrop of the January 06, 2025 visit of U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan to India, wherein he had announced that the U.S. was finalising the necessary steps for the removal of regulations that had prevented civil nuclear cooperation between India’s leading nuclear entities and U.S. companies. The move marks a significant step in operationalising the 2008 nuclear deal, strengthening US-India relations and expanding joint efforts in nuclear and space technologies.