U.S.: Nuclear Deal With India Draws Near [View All]

[jpak]

http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/bw-other/2007/may/01/050108519.html

WASHINGTON (AP) - Meetings meant to jump-start a U.S.-Indian civilian nuclear cooperation plan ended Tuesday with the United States saying a final agreement could be settled this month.

India's foreign secretary, Shiv Shankar Menon, came to Washington for talks with U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns about a deal U.S. officials have portrayed as a way to transform a strategic relationship with a rising, democratic power in Asia.

"We're both confident that we can do this," Menon told reporters. "The quicker the better."

The deal cleared a major hurdle in December when Bush signed a congressionally approved exception to U.S. law to allow the shipment of civilian nuclear fuel to India. The countries must still settle technical negotiations on an overall cooperation plan, and frustration has been evident on both sides.

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