Indo-US nuclear bill hits snag

Washington, Dec 7 (UNI) The Indo-US civilian nuclear agreement, hit an unexpected procedural snag, when the introduction of the related Bill was held up in the House of Representatives last night.

According to Congressional aides, the Conferees appointed on Monday to thrash out a final draft of the bill, were almost through resolving the differences that figured in the versions of the two houses, when House Republican Majority leader John Boehner sprang a surprise, insisting on the inclusion in the ''agreed draft'' an unrelated legislation.

It was not known what was contained in Mr Boehner's measure that upset the legislative agenda. The Congressional aides declined to throw any light on the new situation, apparently in view of the delicate stage of the negotiations.

The six Conferees including four Republicans and two Democrats would now have to contend with Mr Boehner's legislation before proceeding with the main bill.

However, the Conferees still appear hopeful that the House and the Senate would pass the main bill before it adjourns for the weekend.

Earlier, the State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said, ''We're working very closely with members and their staff up on the Capitol Hill (Congress). It's one of President Bush's top priorities to get that (the bill) through in this Congress, which comes to a conclusion in the not-too-distant future.'' When Mr McCormack's attention was drawn to a news report from New Delhi that India would not accept any condition that violates the July 2005 agreement between President Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh which formed the basis of the nuclear deal, in reply, said, ''Well, we of course stand by the agreement that we signed.'' He, however, said, ''In our system there is the Congress; they have a say; they have a say in approving these kind of agreements that require a change in laws. Of course, we believe that anything that the United States Government does with respect to this agreement should abide by both the spirit and the letter of that agreement.'' ''I would just urge everybody involved to see what emerges from the Congress and view it in the context of what is the spirit and letter of the agreement. And, we're confident that this is an agreement that's going to be able to be implemented,'' he said.

Asked about Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns' programme in New Delhi, the spokesman said, ''He's going to be talking about that agreement, the so-called 123 negotiations that are underway; the broad arc of the Indo-US relationship and regional issues. Besides sorting of more and better integration along that arc running from Central Asia down through India.'' Mr McCormack further added, ''I think that there's a lot of potential and a lot of promise there that can be beneficial to all the countries in the region in terms of economic cooperation and integration. He'll talk about that. That's sort of the broad scope.'' UNI XC DKA RK1150