M A I N   N E W S

US positive

Washington, October 23
Amid continuing uncertainty over fate of the Indo-US nuclear deal, the US has said it is “too early” to express disappointment and held out hopes that the two sides “can get it done”.

White House spokesperson Tony Fratto said the Bush administration remained committed to the civil nuclear agreement despite signs that the Manmohan Singh government may balk due to opposition at home from Left parties.

“We don’t believe we can close the book on that yet. I think there’s still some work to do. We want to work with India,” he said.

Fratto said the US understands that the Indian government has to “deal with their local politics, just like we frequently have to deal with our local politics in dealing with these kinds of issues”. — PTI

Burns says time running out for N-deal

New York, October 23
Time is running out for a landmark nuclear deal between India and the USA, Nicholas Burns said on Tuesday.

Burns said it was an internal matter for the Indian government to decide on whether to go ahead with the deal, which would let the country import U.S. nuclear fuel despite having tested nuclear weapons in the past. “We don’t want to interfere in those decisions but we’re certainly saying this is a time for reflection,” Burns told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

“We don’t have an unlimited amount of time,” Burns said, noting that the USA was approaching an election year and it was hard to pass legislation at such times.

“We’d like to get this agreement to the US Congress by the end of the year,” he said. The Indian government is in talks with the four Leftist parties who oppose the deal because they do not want to come under U.S. influence. — Reuters