India and Russia have sealed a breakthrough long-term pact for expanding civil nuclear cooperation that is free from any restriction on India and guarantees it against any curb in the future.

Under the agreement signed on Monday during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Moscow, Russia will set up more nuclear reactors in India, transfer the full range of nuclear energy technologies and ensure uninterrupted supply of fuel.

“Today we have signed an agreement which broadens the reach of our co-operation beyond the supply of nuclear reactors to areas of research and development and a whole range of areas of nuclear energy,” Dr. Singh told a joint press conference in the Kremlin.

He described the nuclear deal as a “major step forward in strengthening our existing cooperation in this field.”

The nuclear pact with Russia goes far beyond the bounds of the 123 pact with the U.S., which calls for the termination of ongoing nuclear cooperation and for the return to the U.S. of equipment and fuel already supplied to India in the event of the nuclear agreement being terminated.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev made it clear that Russia will not accept any foreign-imposed restrictions on its nuclear cooperation with India.

Asked whether Russia would continue unrestricted nuclear cooperation with India despite the G8 resolution restricting the sale of reprocessing technologies to non-NPT countries, Mr. Medvedev said: “That [resolution] does not change anything in our cooperation. It has a great future.”